


Where Dreams Come True

by kitskix



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Anxiety, Best Friends, Choi Jongho is Confused, Choi San is a Sweetheart, Coworkers to lovers, Disney World & Disneyland, Enemies to Lovers, Explicit Language, Friends to Lovers, Hand Jobs, Internalized Homophobia, It’s a mess, Jeong Yunho is Lonely, Jung Wooyoung is a Brat, Kang Yeosang is Whipped, Kim Hongjoong is Bad at Feelings, M/M, POV Alternating, Park Seonghwa is Tired, Pining, Sexual Content, Sexual Tension, Slow Burn, Smut, Song Mingi is an Angel, Strangers to Lovers, coworkers with benefits, cursing, hongjoong stop being on fire challenge, it’s not super descriptive but just in case, mentions of other Idols, nobody asked for this, san may or may not have a crush on the Epcot ball, seriously so many cameos - Freeform, they all love and hate their jobs, this had to take place in America to make sense i’m sorry
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-26
Updated: 2021-02-18
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:22:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 66,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25530529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kitskix/pseuds/kitskix
Summary: Working at Disney World seems magical on the surface. Working there with people like this is not something any of them had in mind. In other words, the Happiest Place on Earth isn’t what they expected.
Relationships: Choi Jongho/Kang Yeosang, Choi San/Jung Wooyoung, Jeong Yunho/Song Mingi, Kim Hongjoong/Park Seonghwa
Comments: 103
Kudos: 322





	1. With Great Power

**Author's Note:**

> Hello !! I’ve had this fic idea in my head for a while and eventually I just gave into it. I’m super excited about it, but also nervous 0_0. I hope you enjoy it and always feel free to leave feedback, I really appreciate it !! 
> 
> Also, I tried to make this as accurate as possible but this does take place in the U.S. and changes had to be made to a few things (nothing major I swear). Just roll with it, everything makes sense in the big picture !! Thank you <3

**Kim Hongjoong**

**Position: Character Attendant and Convention Guide Supervision, Magic Kingdom Park**

Hongjoong loved his job. He really did. From wandering the park in the hot weather to managing coworkers’ locations and costuming to helping the clueless tourists. Even on the busiest days in the Magic Kingdom he could find at least one thing to be happy about, even if it was as simple as taking advantage of the discounts on food and merchandise after a shift. The place was admittedly nice, the park was getting progressively more crowded with the warmer months of summer quickly approaching.

His first year with Disney was spent dreading work, constantly having to wave people on and off the Pirates of the Carribean ride monotonously for eight hours everyday. It had been okay enough, the money was decent and the benefits made up for the work. While he enjoyed all of those things on their own and the easy nature of directing guests, he knew he’d be better suited for a leadership position. Hongjoong was young and hungry for control in a time where he was swallowed by debt, long hours, and dealing with the not-so-satisfied customers. After several months of training he finally moved up to the position he held now as a supervisor. It had been undeniably better when he got to move freely between AdventureLand and FrontierLand, being able to organize everyone and assign tasks to those below him.

That’s how he met some of his closest friends, though they were more so coworkers and acquaintances than anything else. He worked well with them, rarely giving or receiving complaints and always making sure to give praise and criticism where it was due. The only one who attempted to have more than just a mindless interaction with him was San. He was a little younger than himself and worked the Jungle Cruise. He always tried to give updates whenever Hongjoong so much as stepped within fifty feet of him. San was nice, and loud, never failing to ask Hongjoong how he was doing.

Summer had just begun when he was officially assigned to his position, and he had to spend the first few weeks getting to know some of the newer employees. Most were in the college program and needed more coaching than what Hongjoong would believe was necessary, but he figured they’d get the hang of it soon enough. There were a few trouble makers in the mix. Mainly the ones who thought it’d be a “cool and fun summer job”, because “who wouldn’t want to work at the happiest place on earth?” He took his job seriously, and promptly requested they give 100% or leave.

The worst was the cleaning crew, more specifically Seonghwa. He worked a custodial day shift during the busiest hours of the day, which just so happened to line up exactly with Hongjoong’s schedule. For whatever reason, Seonghwa takes it upon himself to leave his location whenever he desires. He was the true bane of Hongjoong’s already miserable existence, he didn’t need this new guy leaving his section and inevitably putting him in hot shit with management.

The day was seemingly average to say the least by the time Hongjoong got to work, travelled through the tunnels, and made it to his post. He ran into some other coworkers, Wooyoung giving him a small wave on his way into the tunnels beneath the park to change into his costume and Jongho who nodded as he was frantically speed walking to FantasyLand so he could fix the Peter Pan ride before too many people complained. Jongho came in as a newbie maintenance technician this year, he was likely even more stressed out than Hongjoong.

He was stopped a few feet inside the entrance of AdventureLand, in the midst of doing his second lap of his second hour, by San who was a bit out of breath and still in his work uniform. Hongjoong could already feel a headache coming on, knowing that whatever San had to tell him was likely not about to be something he’d like to hear so early in the afternoon.

“Shouldn’t you be steering a boat right now?” He questioned tiredly.

San held up a finger and took a deep breath. He was sweating, a lot, with small droplets forming and sliding down his hairline; his hair, that was getting a little too long in the back, was matted to his forehead beneath his brimmed hat. The khaki uniform he wore was damp, likely with a combination of river water and sweat. San placed his hands on his hips, “Maybe if you had been easier to find I wouldn’t have had to leave.”

“Yeah? And what’s your excuse for not just having someone radio me?”

“They left it in their car this morning,” he shook his head, “that doesn’t matter. One of the gorilla animatronics stopped working and we received a complaint from some hardass saying her kid ‘didn’t get the full experience’ or whatever, so you need to call tech to send one of them down here.”

Hongjoong lifted a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose, suddenly feeling the heat from the sun, “That’s all? Okay… I’ll let them know. I doubt they’ll deem it important enough to stop the ride, but if someone’s already complained I wouldn’t say it’s out of the question. Is there anything else?”

San furrowed his brow, shifting his weight from his left foot to his right, “Oh, yeah, Chris over from Splash Mountain wanted me to let you know that Seonghwa took over some guy’s post who didn’t show. They told him he didn’t have to but Seonghwa insisted and said it wasn’t worth calling in someone else. Chris just wanted you to know that it isn’t like Felix to just not show up and he doesn’t want you taking it out on him.”

Hongjoong took a deep breath and shut his eyes as he exhaled, “Where’s he now?”

“Who? Felix?” San tilted his head to the side, clearly confused.

“No,” his tone came out harsher than he intended and the other bit his lip, but Hongjoong didn’t have the current mental capacity to apologize for being annoyed, “Seonghwa. Where is he?”

“Right!” San’s face perked up, “He’s heading back to the bathrooms near Pirates, I think he’s switching out his equipment.”

Hongjoong nodded, “Great, thank you.”

San took his hat off, running a hand messily through his hair, and gave a two-fingered salute, “No problem, Captain,” he grinned, dimples on full display, as he turned on one foot and began heading back to his ride.

“Next time make sure you have a walkie-talkie,” Hongjoong called after him. San gave no sign that he heard him.

Hongjoong heaved a sigh, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and index finger before walking tiredly in the direction of the “Cast Members Only” area behind the restrooms. Park Seonghwa was going to be the death of him. The least he could’ve done was let Hongjoong know he was leaving so he could rework everyone’s location. It’s an inconvenience to have to track him down. He can’t spend too much time chewing him out, though. There’s that call to make maintenance and if they confirm that it’s important enough to fix during this time of the day then he’ll have to ask for San to help him block it off. Maybe Hongjoong could get him to stand in front of the entrance to inform the questioning tourists. San had always been good with handling even the rudest of people, the charisma and dimples probably help.

Hongjoong heard someone humming “Be Our Guest” the closer he got to the door and the moment he yanked it open he came face to face with Seonghwa as he was about to leave.

“Oh, hey,” Seonghwa’s tone was shocked, but the way he stood told him that he must’ve been expecting this. His dark black hair was likely combed to the side that morning but was losing its shape from the heat and the sweat, his white uniform still appeared to be pristine and had no noticeable stains.

Hongjoong had to tilt his head up to actually look at his face, “Chris said you went to FrontierLand earlier.”

The other rolled his eyes, dark brown irises appearing even darker, and took a few steps back, knowing this conversation was likely about to be a long one, “Yeah, Felix didn’t show today and it’s not that hard to go back and forth so I said I’d do it.”

“Why didn’t you just let Chris let his supervisor know so that they could handle it? They have plenty of bodies and you know AdventureLand gets understaffed in summers when college program kids start taking all of the entertainment jobs,” he crossed his arms over his chest, attempting to appear firm despite his short stature being glaringly obvious. Hongjoong refused to let himself be on the wrong side of the power imbalance. Even though Seonghwa was taller and older than him, his position remained below Hongjoong’s and that meant he was technically under his authority.

“It’s not a big deal,” he leaned back against the wall, mirroring Hongjoong in crossing his arms, “like I said, it isn’t hard to go between the two areas.”

He breathed out harshly through his nose, “If you’re not here, then who is? You might be covering for someone else, but when you are, who is covering for you? Maybe if you would have just told me I could’ve worked something out, or told you not to move from your post so they could have the time to just get somebody else in.”

“There’s no point in wasting time,” Seonghwa replied easily, his voice was deep, but light in the way he spoke, “you know how meticulous management is about making sure nobody sees any messes.”

“In that case you should know why trying to clean two sections is counterproductive. While you’re at one, the other gets dirty and there’s no one there to wipe down railings or pick up trash or make sure nobody leaves food lying around. You know you can’t leave your area once it’s assigned to you,” Hongjoong spoke quickly, blood running a bit hot.

Seonghwa looked him up and down, “You’re overthinking it,” he stated simply.

“I don’t need you to patronize me,” Hongjoong’s voice grew louder, and he closed his eyes to regain control, “You know I’m right, there was a better way to go about this and you didn’t follow protocol.”

The older stared at him as though Hongjoong were a specimen under a microscope, “Have you ever considered the thought that I could do it? I really don’t know why you’re acting like this is a big deal.”

A groan came from the back of his throat, he clenched his jaw tightly, “Seonghwa, you were to keep the area between the Aladdin ride and Pirates clean. You waste _more_ time going from that area to Splash mountain than you would just staying at your post. San was practically out of breath because he was trying to go between them fast enough to find me and let me know.”

Seonghwa raised an eyebrow, “San ran around just to tell you I left? Does the guy really have nothing to do? Why not yell at him for not radioing you? He left his area too.”

Hongjoong seriously considered knocking himself out by slamming his head against a wall, “He was actually trying to let me know one of the animatronics broke down. _He_ had somebody cover for him, like he should. His coworker forgot their microphone and I’m sure I’ll get their name later today if not right after this conversation when I request for maintenance,” he shook his head to stop from rambling on further, “The point is, you’re trying to take on responsibilities and in doing so you’re disrupting the order of things and it could’ve gotten far worse if San hadn’t said something.”

“And what are you doing right now?” Seonghwa questioned, corners of his mouth turning upwards.

He glared accusingly, “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’re wasting just as much time lecturing me on doing my job when I could actually be out there cleaning up after people like I should be. You’re just as guilty as I am,” he moved from his spot against the wall, walking past Hongjoong.

“You weren’t doing your job!” Hongjoong retorted, exasperated, and Seonghwa paused as he opened the door, “You left to go clean somewhere else and now I have to make another call to make sure Chris has somebody now that you’re going to be here.”

Seonghwa just huffed out a sigh, “That wouldn’t be a problem if I could just do both, but okay,” he left with that as his parting sentiment and it took everything in Hongjoong not to chase after him.

He shut his eyes for a moment, gathering his thoughts before picking his walkie-talkie up from his belt, pressing the correct channel and lifting it to his mouth, “This is Kim Hongjoong, AdventureLand Supervisor. Chris Bang, do you copy?”

“Hongjoong, I was wondering when you'd finally contact us,” Chris’s voice was muffled by the speaker.

“I’m really not in the mood, Bang,” he placed a hand on his hip and looked down at his shoes, “Just tell me if you made sure to call in a replacement.”

“Didn’t have to, Felix showed up ten minutes ago practically dying from sprinting all the way here. Tell Seonghwa I don’t need him.”

“You shouldn’t have needed him any way,” Hongjoong scoffed, “He needs to learn how to stay put when I assign him an area. Seonghwa can’t be in two places at once, I don’t care how fast he thinks he can walk on those long legs.”

Chris laughed into the walkie-talkie, “That guy really loves to clean, though, he works quick and I don’t think I’ve seen the kids’ play place that clean in a while.You should keep him around, even if he is a pain in the ass.”

“It’s not like I have the power to fire him anyway,” no matter how much he fantasized about it.

“There’s no way he’s worse than Felix, he can get the job done but he’s left spray bottles on the bathroom sinks twice this week.”

Hongjoong allowed himself a small chuckle, “Yeah, I can’t say that’s happened. Anyway, thanks for telling San so that I could straighten Seonghwa out. Make sure to give Felix at least a warning, I know how lax you all are on the rules over there.”

“Yeah, yeah. I will. Take care, Hongjoong. Over and out.”

Hongjoong took another moment to clear his head, focusing on the walkie-talkie until he found his next recipient. He pressed the button and waited a few seconds before greeting himself.

“This is Jennie, what is it you are requesting for?” The tired voice of a girl, likely in her twenties, asked.

“Yeah, we need a tech guy down at Jungle Cruise. One of the guests complained that an animatronic wasn’t working and the employees confirmed it was a gorilla.”

“Let me guess, they said they ‘didn’t feel immersed in the magic’ because of it?” The girl, Jennie, must’ve had a long day because she did _not_ sound like this was the first maintenance call of her shift.

“More or less. Will you send somebody now or just wait until tonight after closing?”

“It’s minor and quick enough to just send someone now, just halt the ride when… let me see who’s available,” she paused, and Hongjoong tapped his foot to count the seconds, “Choi Jongho will be there soon I’ll radio him now. Keep Jungle Cruise running until he gets there and if it’s as simple as one stopped animatronic it shouldn't take more than ten to fifteen minutes.”

“Perfect, thank you, over and out,” Hongjoong lifted his finger from the call button and immediately slipped the device back into place at his belt.

He ran both hands through his hair and scratched the base of his neck with blunt fingernails. With one last glance around the room he stepped out and wandered back into AdventureLand. He should head to Jungle Cruise to let them know they’ll have to shut the ride down while it’s getting fixed, maybe stop anyone from getting in line now so that guests could go elsewhere. There should be a parade soon, the line likely isn’t long and it wouldn’t be hard to clear out for a few minutes while the tourists leave to watch it.

Hongjoong stopped his walk near the gift shop just outside of the Pirates of the Carribean, spotting Seonghwa pushing a garbage can around the corner to the large doors where the dumpsters resided. It may be a good idea to pull him now and get him to wipe down the railings for the ride while there's nobody on it, or just run through to pick up some stray bottle caps or wrappers that somehow always end up on the ground.

He wasted no time in following Seonghwa to the back and calling after him.

The other turned to face him, “Are you here to finish lecturing me?”

Hongjoong let a frown settle in his brow, “No, I need you to come with me,” he gestured for the older to follow after him as he turned in the direction of his destination.

Seonghwa’s footsteps caught up with his, “Am I in trouble or something?”

He waved off his concern with his hand, “No, I just called for maintenance and it’s going to take some time to repair. There’s a parade going on at this time so I thought it’d be convenient to make an announcement that the ride will be shut down for now and have the guests clear out the lines so you could clean it up a bit. You know how it gets in there when the lazy tourists start to leave their stuff around just because the ride is so easy-going.”

Seonghwa nodded his head in agreement, “It’s a good thing I have an extra trash bag on me, I just used three of them between Tortuga’s and here alone.”

“Maybe if you hadn’t left for so long you wouldn’t have needed to pick up so much trash,” Hongjoong couldn’t stop himself from instigating, he could feel Seonghwa’s eyes burning holes into the side of his face. He couldn’t help but smirk with a bit of pride and a sense that he had just won.


	2. Whistle While You Work

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All Seonghwa wanted was to do his job and do it well. He should be able to just that if certain obstacles, in the form of his supervisor, would let him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys !! I really enjoyed writing this chapter and I hope you like reading it just as much. The story should start being more fluid after this as more characters get introduced. Thank you so much for reading !! Feedback is always appreciated:)

**Park Seonghwa**

**Position: Custodial Services, Magic Kingdom Park**

Seonghwa tightened his grip around the spray bottle at his waist. He walked in silence alongside Hongjoong, who was making no attempt to start small talk with him. Hongjoong may have thought what Seonghwa had done lacked logic, but it really _was_ easy doing what he liked to do: clean. 

When he had initially taken a custodian job, a lot of people, including his own coworkers, looked down on him. That’s just the way things are, people who work to pick up after others are usually seen as “less than”, especially if it’s done for the large numbers of people who came into the park for the sole purpose of having no responsibilities. Whenever he’d been asked if he liked his job, he always said “yes, of course”, because it really wasn’t all that bad. He could let his mind wander while he cleaned, he didn’t have to think about what he was doing when all he did was spray, wipe, sweep, and toss thoroughly enough for the guests and staff that occupied AdventureLand. Seonghwa did what was required of him, and if he chose to do more it didn’t hurt anybody.

Hongjoong and Seonghwa stopped just outside of Jungle Cruise.

“You wait here,” the shorter said, “I’ll let the ones ushering people on and off and those operating the ride know we’re closing it down as soon as Jongho gets here so they can all take their fifteen minute break. Don’t wander off.”

It was a dig at him going off to FrontierLand, Seonghwa knew, but he couldn’t exactly deny it, “Whatever you say, Captain.”

Hongjoong’s features twisted in annoyance at the nickname, though he nodded nonetheless and turned to head further into the ride.

Seonghwa stepped to the side, eyeing the surrounding area until he spotted a few empty chip bags and soda bottles left near the steps. With a quick glance back in the direction Hongjoong left in, he walked quickly over to them while tugging on a new pair of plastic gloves. He always prided himself on working efficiently and, no matter how small the mess happened to be, he was sure to handle it with enough care that nobody would have complaints, “He just doesn’t get it,” he muttered to himself, thinking absent-mindedly of how Hongjoong would most definitely scold him for walking away if he were caught.

He returned to his original spot just as the aforementioned returned from the ride, San in tow, “They’re stopping people from entering now. San is going to stay out here,” he glanced back at the younger boy behind him who was fixed with a lopsided smile, “and he’ll deal with the people who might start asking to be let on. Jongho should be here any-,” he cut himself off before shaking his head, “or right now.”

He turned just enough to see Jongho making his way up to them, breathing with a slight harshness that was more the heat than actually walking there. He offered him a small wave and a smile before turning back to the others as he joined them. Jongho was built strong, he had heard San once compare him to an ox, with a stocky sort of shape and muscle outweighing everything else. He was still boyish in his face, round eyes and soft lines. Seonghwa rarely got to see Jongho at work. The two were roommates as of a few months ago after he and Yunho, Seonghwa’s _other_ roommate, set up an online ad offering the third bedroom as long as they paid an exact third of the rent. Jongho may have been new to the company, but he was familiar with it enough and had an excellent resume that landed him a well paying job. He was a few years younger than Seonghwa, fresh out of college, holding an aura of maturity that he found no problem respecting.

“Jennie said an animatronic was down, I didn’t think there were very many on this ride that needed avid maintenance,” his words came out slowly, juxtaposing his tense posture.

San ran a hand through his hair, a habit Seonghwa couldn’t help but notice the boy had, “They usually don’t because of how simple they are, but they’re old so it happens every once in a while. I’m sure it’s an easy fix, Hongjoong can show you back there.”

Jongho nodded, asking Hongjoong with his eyes to lead him to where he was needed. Hongjoong followed suit, eyeing Seonghwa and squeezing San’s shoulder before starting off to the back entrance of the attraction.

After a small crowd emptied the line, there was nobody left in the queue. He started by spraying down the outermost railings, “I can’t believe Hongjoong picks and chooses when I get to do my job,” he complained aloud.

San shook his head, “I hate to break it to you, but that’s actually _his_ job.”

With a roll of his eyes he moved on to the next set of bars, “You know what I mean,” he took out a rag and scrubbed at a stain from God-knows-what, “He always likes to bitch at me for cleaning and then does the same thing when I’m not.”

“He just wants you to stick to your area. He’s actually really smart about that sort of stuff when he isn’t being such a hothead, you know?”

“I’ll believe it when I see it.”

San smiled and waved at a few people strolling by, “I think he overreacted a little about you leaving today, though. I would’ve been more pissed off at Chris for letting you do it than anything else. You know, since he could’ve just told you to leave and you wouldn’t have had a choice. Hongjoong is just really stressed all the time, he doesn’t even realize it.”

Seonghwa looked up in disbelief, “Really? I always assumed he was obsessed with following the rules.”

“Oh, he is,” San grinned, like he knew something Seonghwa didn’t, “but he also used to be a lot of fun to mess with when he worked Pirates.”

He raised an eyebrow at him curiously, “What?”

“That’s right!” He turned to face Seonghwa better as the latter continued to sanitize the metal bars, “I forgot you transferred here… Where were you last year?”

“Epcot.”

“ _Epcot_ ,” San repeated wistfully, “What was that like? Hard, I bet, since it’s bigger. Then again, there’s never as many people or kids to pick up after. Magic Kingdom is the worst since the majority of the guests choose this park and most of the time it’s open the latest. You’re probably tired _all the time_ ,” he exaggerated the end.

Seonghwa stood and shook out his legs after crouching for so long, “Not really. Unlike most of the custodians, I actually enjoy what I’m doing here. That’s what people like Hongjoong don’t understand; I actually _want_ more area to cover, it’s what I’m used to.”

“I bet your room is super clean.”

Seonghwa started to laugh. The statement wasn’t even said as a joke, San sounded completely serious and almost amazed, “Yeah, it is actually, the whole apartment too. I don’t have very messy roommates, that helps a lot. Jongho stays in his room most of the time and-”

San whipped around fast enough Seonghwa got whiplash from watching it, “Wait, Jongho, as in Jongho fixing the gorilla right now? That one?”

“That’s the one.”

“But you guys acted like you didn’t know each other! Every time I see mine at the ice cream place on Main Street I always have _at least_ a ten minute conversation,” he bounced on his toes, “Sometimes I spend my breaks there.”

“Well, Jongho isn’t all that outgoing. He’s an introvert, he wouldn’t like me making a show out of knowing him and I don’t want to make him uncomfortable. It doesn’t help that he’s still pretty new at this whole thing and gets embarrassed by the smallest stuff.”

“You mentioned roommates, plural, you have more than one?” 

Seonghwa rested himself against the stack of faux crates, his mind working to keep up with San’s conversation, “Yeah, Jongho, obviously, and Jeong Yunho.”

“Does he work the parks too?”

“After hour security here,” he paused for a moment, thinking he should ask a question, “What about you? You only mentioned having one.”

“Song Mingi,” San supplied easily, eyes glinting with that excitement they always seemed to carry, “He’s my only one, he works the last shift at that ice cream place I mentioned before and usually gets home later than I do. He’s really tall and kinda lanky, awkward but in the way that’s charming. It’s why he works at the front rather than restocking the back.”

“Does he like it there? I’m sure it’s tough having to sling ice cream to hundreds of whiny kids all day.”

San nodded, “He’s pretty good with them, he’s like a giant kid himself if I’m being honest.”

“And you?” Seonghwa had admittedly taken a liking to hearing the other talk. The silence was being filled and he didn’t have to keep thinking of responses. 

“What about me?”

“Do you like Jungle Cruise?”

“Definitely,” his eyes shifted to an expression of quiet contentment rather than the overt enthusiasm from a few seconds prior, “It’s nice because you get to be more hands on with passengers. I don’t know what I’d do if I couldn’t talk or make jokes to a bunch of people all day. The attention is great, too, especially if you like to be more casual about it than being one of those street dancers or characters that have to perform to their fullest every time there’s a parade. At the same time, though, you get a bad crowd and it’s silent the whole time. That’s the worst,” he visibly cringed at the thought and Seonghwa offered him a sympathetic look. 

“Why didn’t you try to become a street performer?”

San scratched at the back of his neck and played with the strands of hair there, “I did, but I didn’t make it. You know how it is with all of the College Program kids and older guys with actual degrees getting those positions.”

Seonghwa nodded, he knew what it was like to an extent. Yunho auditioned to be a dancer for the world showcase at Epcot just last year while applying for a day-time security. He hadn’t made it either, but it turned out to be a good thing after Seonghwa witnessed how mistreated they were.

“It worked out though. I like all of the people I’ve met while at Jungle Cruise, even the ones over at-”

He was interrupted by the sound of two voices coming from behind them and they stopped their conversation to see Jongho and Hongjoong approaching them. Jongho wearing a small smile and Hongjoong talking more animatedly than Seonghwa had ever seen him. He looked a bit like he might actually be in a good mood. 

“You’re all set,” Jongho said, voice a little breathy as though he was flustered, “It should run smoothly and I doubt anything else will shut down on you. I did a walk through of a few other animatronics Hongjoong mentioned that gave you trouble and I didn’t see anything externally wrong with them.”

“That’s good, I’m sure the Captain’s happy,” Seonghwa looked pointedly at Hongjoong, face possessing an expression of certain arrogance. 

Hongjoong’s few moments of satisfaction from the repair visibly ended, “When will you stop calling me that? Everyone here started doing it because of you two,” he glared accusingly at San who wore a guilty smile.

Seonghwa lifted a hand and laughed behind it, “Whatever you say, _Captain_.”

The shorter threw his hands up in defeat, “I can’t do this,” his posture shifted to a warmer stance as he faced Jongho, “Thank you for coming down here, I’ll call Jennie and request for you next time since I can now get a coworker who actually gives a damn.”

Jongho glanced uncomfortably at Seonghwa, questioning if he should defend him. Seonghwa shook his head dismissively and Jongho shifted his gaze back to Hongjoong, “It’s no problem,” he rolled his lips, “I should get going, though, my shift ends in a few hours and they like to keep me moving all day.”

“I’ll call Yunho on my break and make sure he picked up the mail or at least made dinner so you don’t have to,” Seonghwa added just as Jongho was turning away, while the delivery wasn’t ideal he didn’t want to forget at least mentioning it. He knew how busy Jongho’s days could get and he didn’t need him worrying over anything. 

The younger flushed bright red, “Y-Yeah, uh okay… thank you,” he spoke as though he’d been caught doing something he shouldn’t have and he turned away, speed walking in the direction of the tunnels.

“Bye, Jongho,” San waved kindly, not appearing to have expected an answer, “I’m gonna start the ride up again, I’m sure the others will be back soon. Thanks for cleaning up all the trash and everything, Seonghwa.”

“Of course.”

“And thank _you_ for getting maintenance down here in the first place, Captain,” San threw him a teasing wink and strode to the podium with all of the connecting machinery.

When Seonghwa faced Hongjoong again he was met with furious eyes and an expectant frown, “What was that about with Jongho?”

Seonghwa’s eyes were going to get stuck from all of this eye rolling, “What does that even mean?” He started to walk away from the other, “I share a place with him off property. What’s wrong with that?”

Hongjoong jogged to catch up with him, having to walk faster to keep pace, “You said that to purposefully make me feel bad for saying you didn’t take your job seriously, didn’t you?”

“Can you just chill out? Calm down. Not everything is as deeply motivated as you think it is.”

“That doesn’t mean there isn’t any motive at all,” he gritted out defensively, as if Seonghwa was actively attacking his thought process and reasoning. Hongjoong kept his eyes trained on him, as if he could read Seonghwa’s thoughts by staring hard enough. 

“Maybe I actually wanted Jongho to know that information. He’s just as impacted by our roommate’s schedule and actions as I am, he’s entitled to my communication and planning,” he continued to walk towards the opposite end of AdventureLand, tilting his head back to observe the sky. Dark storm clouds were making their way over from TomorrowLand and rain would likely start any minute. The white noise of tourists rushing to get from one place to another buzzed in his ears, the surrounding individuals having lively conversations about inclimate weather heading their way. 

Ever since he began working in the Magic Kingdom, and, by extension, under Hongjoong, he noticed the constant and excessive interrogation sessions he would be subjected to. Hongjoong was a royal pain in the ass, not just because of how often he sought him out to criticize him, he was seeking him out to monitor everything he was doing. It dawned on Seonghwa, as he walked next to him, just how obnoxious Hongjoong had been behaving. He felt a burning sensation under his skin once he risked a look at the other.

“-and you can’t just say stuff like that, especially personal matters… are you even listening?” Hongjoong halted in his tracks, forcing the older to a stop.

“Your obsession with what I do is borderline unprofessional. Are you even hearing yourself, Hongjoong?” Seonghwa pressed his index and middle fingers against his temples, massaging the pressure points there, “Why does it matter? It was just the four of us: me, you, my friend, and one of the most relaxed workers in this park. Why are you getting so worked up about this?”

“ _I’m being unprofessional?_ I don’t care whether we’re in front of guests or not, personal matters are discussed on your breaks. They aren’t to be brought up when you’re working,” Hongjoong attempted to reign back his anger, purposefully walking off to the side and around a secluded corner where they could continue in private, “You shouldn’t expose your personal life to coworkers no matter the circumstances. Professionalism is to be maintained in every condition and that includes colleagues you’re friendly with.”

“Then go ahead and grab San and tell him that too. He and I talked about _plenty_ of these ‘personal matters’,” he used his fingers as air quotes, emphasizing just how outrageous this imaginary issue was, “I know you’re biased towards him so maybe you’ll actually hear him out instead of making assumptions about ulterior motives that don’t even exist.”

“Even if you didn’t have an ulterior motive in telling Jongho about whatever you needed to, that doesn’t change the fact you did it. That’s what I’m getting at, Seonghwa,” Hongjoong held eye contact for a few seconds of silence. 

A light drizzle started to surround them. Seonghwa looked Hongjoong up and down, taking in his appearance. His khaki slacks had a dirt stain on the knee, and were wrinkled in several places. The white polo he was wearing was slowly being coated in raindrops, his name tag tilted and collar askew. The hem was close to coming untucked as well.

When Seonghwa’s eyes shifted back up to his face, Hongjoong was still staring at him. His skin was a bit ashen, cheeks drained of color from exerting himself. Frown lines were evident, deep in his brow and around his mouth, even with his young age. His eyebrows were drawn together, a mix of stress and frustration marring his expression. The eyes that met his own were tired, dark circles heavy beneath them. Seonghwa focused on the other’s irises, deep brown swallowed by blown pupils. Something in them shook, as if attempting not to show how desperately Hongjoong was trying to hold back something overwhelming and violent trapped inside of him.

Seonghwa sighed, breaking their eye contact, looking at the ground before raising his head to observe the people running through the rain that got heavier and heavier with every passing minute, “Hongjoong… you can’t control everything. That’s what you need to understand, you’re not doing anybody any good, especially not yourself, by trying to manage every thought and action taken by the people who work for you.”

He walked away before Hongjoong could answer, strolling away as fast as he could while maintaining a casual speed. Facing forward, he searched for cover and refused to look back at where he left him. Seonghwa just wanted to get out of the rain. 


	3. A Spoonful of Sugar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yunho just wanted company in a place that is normally filled with people, yet so completely empty at night. He learned to seek it in an ice cream parlor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello Hello !! This is definitely going to be one of my favorite chapters and I hope I could show that enough through it. The more you read, the more things start connecting and intertwining. It’s really unbelievable how oblivious these boys are, but where would the fun be without internal conflicts and cluelessness ?? Anyway, thank you so much for reading and I hope you like it <3 (as always, feedback is appreciated:))

**Jeong Yunho**

**Position: After Hour Security, Magic Kingdom Park**

By the time Yunho made it to work, everyone was already on their way out. The crowd was large, narrowing only as the people funneled through the exits to get to whatever method of transport they so preferred. The sun was close to being completely below the horizon, the lampposts lining the streets serving as the main source of light alongside the colorful merchandise sold at the final kiosks that had yet to shut down. He took slow steps, biding his time and watching the rush of the last couple of visitors run down MainStreet to the front entrance of the park. They waved distractedly at him and Yunho waved back, bidding them a goodnight.

His favorite time of his shift is the very beginning, when he got to see the day-time workers closing up and they would occasionally stop to have a conversation with him. Today was more serene and without interruption, which can be good too. Seonghwa had called him earlier that evening, since their timing never lined up if one of them was running late, about what was leftover from dinner for Jongho by the time they’d get home. The former didn’t dwell on the topic much before going off on a tangent about his supervisor, only stopping when Yunho reminded him to get off the phone while driving.

He pushed open the door to the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor on the corner, brushing his hands down the front of his light blue button down uniform to straighten it. A bell rang out, signaling he entered, and the final two workers looked up from behind the counter where they were restocking utensils. They stood up together and Yunho had to hold back a smile at the height difference between the two.

Mingi smiled at him, face lighting up, “You’re earlier than usual.”

“Yeah,” Yunho could feel the tips of his ears burn, “Only by like two minutes. Do you want me to come back later?”

Wendy looked between the two of them, “I’ll just say I left early if anyone asks why you’re closing so late,” she sighed, having to lift her head to talk to them, “Just make sure you lock the freezer, you forgot that last time,” she clapped a hand on Mingi’s back and he bobbed his head up and down in acknowledgment. 

“Okay, sure thing, thanks Wen,” he stuttered out, “Do you want me to run a last sweep through?”

She picked up a small duffle bag from the back and strode to the exit, “Don’t worry about it, I’ll just call Mark and have him do it in the morning. He always gets there early, anyway,” Wendy threw up a peace sign, “don’t stay too long, Mingi, I might need you to cover for Joy tomorrow.”

“See you.”

The bell rang again and she was gone, leaving Yunho and Mingi to themselves.

Ever since Yunho transferred from Epcot to the Magic Kingdom, he made a point to get ice cream before every shift. Even if it was a simple scoop of vanilla, which it usually had to be or else he’d end up feeling sick when wandering the park. He became familiar with the workers quickly, knowing exactly who closed so he could ask for whatever flavor they had extra of. That’s how he met Mingi, he was shutting the place down on his first day and was scared out of his mind when Yunho showed up. He managed to calm the other down enough to explain that he did it all the time and he just wanted a small vanilla cone with a cherry on top.

“You want your usual?” Mingi asked taking out a single scooper and kiddie-sized cone, already heading over to the classic flavors. 

“You know me well,” Yunho looked around the tiny parlor, it really was too cramped for such a popular spot in the park.

The walls were coated in pastel paint, white, pink, and blue, with elegant wood designs contributing to the vintage atmosphere. The small hanging lights were dim, but were just enough for him to be able to see his surroundings. Yunho stepped around the railing and positioned himself to lean his elbows onto the spotless counter. His eyes followed Mingi’s movements, the uniform he wore matched the building in its appearance. The pants were crisp, white and ending at the ankle; his light blue tie was undone, the first two buttons of the striped shirt he wore were left open. His sleeves were rolled up so they hugged his upper arms rather than hanging loose near his elbow like they should. The flat cap worn by all male employees was discarded on the far end on the counter where his bag rested, tilting slightly where it sat on the edge but remaining still.

“There you go,” Mingi handed him the ice cream and mirrored his posture so they were properly facing each other, “Since you’re early, I’m assuming Seonghwa was running late today?”

“I wasn’t gonna wait around for him to get home and end up having to miss ice cream, after today I think I deserve it,” he plucked the cherry from the top and bit it off the stem, rolling it between his fingers.

“Did you not sleep well?” Mingi’s index finger tapped against his opposite forearm.

“Barely at all,” he paused to get in a few licks, letting the sweet taste coat his tongue, “I think the air conditioning in my apartment complex is busted, it was blazing and I could hear our neighbors’ fans through the walls with how loud they were running.”

“I didn’t have the greatest day either,” Mingi started, tone conveying how tiring it had been, “I had this mother of five scream at me for getting her kids’ orders wrong, but Wendy was on her break and the others were organizing a new shipment that got here this morning. I don’t know how she expected me to remember the five orders when she refused to give me time to write them down, because apparently they all felt like getting different flavors for every scoop and a billion toppings.”

Yunho let out a breathy laugh, his drowsiness wearing off, “I’m sure that was stressful.”

“It _was_ ,” he groaned and let his head fall between his arms, “there were a bunch of people in line and I had to redo it. She kept threatening to complain to guest resources the whole time. I was so embarrassed, I nearly dropped them when I handed the cups to her. The second Wendy got back I took my break, and thankfully found San. He talked endlessly about this guy from custodial services he spent some time with while maintenance fixed an animatronic or something…,” he trailed off, face reddening, “Sorry, I’m rambling.”

Yunho really didn’t mind, the thing he liked most about coming here was listening to Mingi talk and letting himself be woken up by the stories he heard. He was one of the few people Yunho actually got to be friends with that weren’t his roommates or other night security guards. He was the kind of guy you couldn’t help but like, his voice was heavy, warm like a blanket. Yunho never talked to Seonghwa or Jongho about the time he spent here. He didn’t exactly have a reason not to, but it was nice to have a friendship that could be exclusively his. They didn’t need much other than nightly, fifteen minute talks to keep up with each other and Yunho liked to think Mingi appreciated the normalcy as much as he did.

“No, no, you’re fine,” he encouraged, “Your talking is helping me shake off the exhaustion. Keep going, you were talking about the busted ride.”

“Oh, okay,” the other cleared his throat, “San told me all about how their supervisor got really pissed over it for some reason?” He poses the end more so as if it were a question, “I don’t remember, I just know that he found it hilarious because the maintenance guy looked uncomfortable as hell being forced to stand there and witness it all.”

Yunho didn’t know these people, but he didn’t have to, the names were enough to recognize who they were in Mingi’s life, “He’d probably get along with Seonghwa. He doesn’t try to, but he’s always embarrassing our other roommate at work. I don’t blame him, it is really funny to see Jongho’s blush reach all the way from his chest to his hair,” he moved his hand upward, emphasizing what he hoped to be an accurate impression.

Mingi’s eyes formed crescents as his shoulders shook with quiet laughter, “That’s probably how Wendy feels working with me. She made fun of me when she came back and I told her about what happened, I was genuinely scared it was going to be a real reason for someone to file a complaint to management and she _teased me_.”

“I won’t lie, it is kind of funny to imagine you trying to keep up with orders for a bunch of kids who were probably trying to climb up on everything,” 

The younger’s mouth fell open, “Oh, I get it, you’re a traitor now. I see how it is. I’ll just tell Wendy to start closing, so you two can laugh at my pain together,” he raised an eyebrow in a playful challenge.

“Come on now, then who would let me stay until…,” he glanced at the watch around his wrist, “five after midnight.”

“Oh shit!” Mingi jumped up, rushing to the back.

Yunho heard a door slam and the jingling of keys, then the clatter of them falling on the ground. Mingi cursed under his breath, though it was loud enough for him to make out, then presumably locked what Yunho assumed to be the freezer. When he came back out he was walking quickly between the glass cases, locking them up and clipping the key ring around his belt loop.

“I should’ve left ten minutes ago, you can’t distract me like that.”

Yunho stood back to his full height so he was just barely taller than the other, “So it’s my fault you forgot to lock it?”

Mingi huffed a bit, placing the company-given cap back onto his head, small curls and waves escaping beneath it, “No, but it’s your fault I forgot to do it,” he gestured for Yunho to follow him out the door, propping it open with his foot.

He walked out into the warm night air, a breeze blowing lazily past him. His eyes scanned the portion of mainstreet he could see, landing on the massive castle that was the meeting point and central hub of the park. Yunho faintly heard the sound of the door being closed and locked, Mingi muttering to himself in a hushed voice.

“Doesn’t it freak you out?” He asked.

Yunho turned, “I’m sorry, what?”

“Doesn’t it freak you out?” Mingi repeated, stepping out in the direction of the distant parking lot, “Being alone and walking around in the dark, I mean.”

He could see how most would find it strange that someone would _want_ to walk around an empty amusement park for several hours straight. There were a lot of things he actually liked about it, the peacefulness and the paychecks. His hours weren’t nearly as long as other employees like Seonghwa, Jongho, and Mingi. The actual start time itself was flexible depending on how late the park was staying open on any given day.

“No, it gets kind of lonely, though,” he answered honestly.

“There are other guards, aren’t there? Don’t you see them when you’re on patrol?”

Yunho shook his head, his gaze shifting over Mingi’s features which were sharpened under the light, “Not always. Sometimes I’ll run into this girl Yeri in TomorrowLand or JK from FantasyLand, but I usually just wander around and make sure nobody is trying to get in or help people if they need to get out.”

Mingi shrugged, looking troubled as he glanced back at the exit, “I should go, San will smother me with questions if I show up any later than one,” he adjusted his grip on the strap of his bag, eyebrows shooting up, “I just remembered,” he unzipped it from the top, rummaging around before pulling out a can, “You said you were tired earlier and I have an extra energy drink, do you want it?” Mingi held it out with his hand, offering it.

Yunho’s face broke into a grin, “Yeah, thank you,” the gesture was kind, simple, and reminded him of Seonghwa. He reached out, taking it from the other, and wrapped both of his hands around it, almost cradling the canister. 

“Anytime,” he smiled with one side of his mouth, “Don’t fall asleep on the job. See you tomorrow?”

At the end of their conversations, Mingi always asked the last part as if it was something to be questioned, “Of course.”

Mingi gave him a peace sign, just as Wendy had earlier, “Goodnight.”

Yunho mimicked his movement, “Goodnight, drive safe.”

“You too,” Mingi called back, “You know, when you actually get to leave!”

He scoffed to himself, the sprightly undertone of the younger’s departing statement lifting his spirits some while he walked deeper into the park in the opposing direction. His least favorite part of the night approached faster than he thought, when silence settled over him and there was nothing left to do or say.

The time after everyone had abandoned the park, save for the few actually working night patrol, may just be what made Yunho dread working more than anything. There were those things he thought of before that made the work worth it, but whenever he is actually doing it he is reminded of how much better off he’d be if he took a day-time job. He missed being able to interact with people all day, hearing them talk to each other would even be enough. 

When he initially came to join Disney as a “cast member” he auditioned to be a street performer, someone who would be in front of people all day every day. His parents pushed him into law enforcement early, and he pursued it to appease them, but he always thought he’d at least get the chance to actually be in front of a crowd. There had been too many people going for the same position back then and Yunho tried not to take it personally when he was selected for security over dance. Seonghwa had made an effort to always remind him of how terribly performers had it, the constant heat and pressure from guests as well as management to be perfect down to the smallest details or shortest seconds of a show. 

With that opportunity gone, Yunho took advantage of what he got despite how much it changed how he lived everyday. He didn’t have too many work-friends, the handful of security workers kept to themselves and it wasn’t typical for them to survey the area in pairs. The only person he really had before moving to Magic Kingdom was Seonghwa, who mainly used to serve as a late night janitor. One that he quickly became acquainted with after walking between the Epcot ball and Test Track five times over and seeing the same white uniform every lap. Their schedules were synced and they worked around one another just as much as they worked with each other, frequently finding themselves asking the other for rides back to their shared apartment complex before they agreed on just splitting the rent of a three-bedroom. 

They found that neither of them had really connected to their coworkers, the park being so large and impersonal unless you worked with the showcase half with the interactive activities. When Seonghwa said he wanted to transfer, Yunho didn’t hesitate to file for it with him. That was around the time they needed a third roommate because they couldn’t afford to pay for three bedrooms on the paychecks of two people. When Jongho came into the picture, Yunho thought that would be all he needed to feel satisfied. Then, he learned about the hour scheduling of Magic Kingdom and realized he’d have to sleep while Seonghwa was at home, leave by the time he and Jongho were headed back to the apartment, and return while they were still asleep. 

Yunho would be reminded of just how much he craved the social life he had before as he walked the empty streets within the center of the park. He considered submitting an application for another audition, but the competition of the Magic Kingdom even surpassed that of Hollywood Studios. There wasn’t a motivational drive to go for it anymore, it was better to stick with stability for now. He supposed he should be grateful, not having to deal with the unhappy guests or the gruelling training that went into being a performer. A part of him envied it, though, too, because he saw just how spectacular the parades and sets could be; the thrill of being a viewer was nothing in comparison to being a part of the experience.

He was conflicted, torn between wanting everything to stay the way it is because it was what he had grown accustomed to and wanting things to change because the street lamps and empty trash cans weren’t all-that-great company in the grand scheme of things. These hours of solitude made the minutes spent in the ice cream parlor seem like seconds, and he chased after those interactions no matter how small they turned out to be in comparison to everything else. People like Mingi made up for the late-nights spent alone, he was proof that others like him existed: others that wanted to talk to him that weren’t Seonghwa or Jongho. Wendy, too, who left with only a few words spoken to him, was just as important. There were expectations Yunho had for himself, standards that he didn’t think he knew the full extent of. He needed to have that balance, and in the stillness of the nights spent in Magic Kingdom he only found emptiness. There was nobody to fill it except himself and the comforting thoughts of a lived-in apartment occupied by his best friend and the closest person he had to a brother and the single scoops of vanilla ice cream with cherries on top made by someone with the shyest, yet most genuine smile.


	4. Once Upon a Dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yeosang was comfortable, if sweating bullets and trying to keep up an act for hours on end could be considered as such. Going inside was the best thing to happen to him all day. The boy who accompanied him just so happened to be the added bonus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys !! This chapter took a lot of thought because I was super worried about the amount of dialogue being too much, but for this chapter to progress it was definitely necessary. There's finally a little spark of something more in this one and I hope you like it. Feedback is welcomed and appreciated :)

**Kang Yeosang**

**Position: Haunted Mansion Employee, Magic Kingdom Park**

The Florida sun was relentless and unforgiving when the only thing there was to do was stand and greet people in a three piece butler uniform that was only getting sweatier with every passing second. There was little joy in working at the Haunted Mansion. The lines were usually long, little kids would scream throughout the day only for drunk adults to stumble through the gates at night, and breaking character was forbidden. Yeosang could feel the beads of sweat as they rolled down the sides of his face and neck, standing as still as he could to maintain undead stiffness.

He’d let his mind wander as he took turns with his other coworker with the verbal welcome, merely bowing his head in sync with her. The only thing that made him take this job was his other option being It’s a Small World, and he didn’t think being forced to listen to the same song on repeat for an eight hour shift every day was going to be in the best interest of those around him. Yeosang glanced down at his watch, checking the time to see if he could switch locations with the cast members inside.

“Five more minutes,” he whispered under his breath, only loud enough for Mina to hear him.

He saw her offer the slightest nod out of the corner of his eye, not able to directly acknowledge him. They continued to stand in silence with each other, only speaking to the occasional guest with a simple “Welcome” or “Enjoy your stay”. 

The day was slow moving, the weather being too dry and parching for many of the visitors to stay out for too long. They’d fall in line, passing by the two greeters without as much as a single look in their direction, to escape the blistering sun. Small children were too tired from the heat to start screaming, which made the hours he had spent at the entrance tolerable. He heard faint footsteps from behind him approaching, and he turned with his hands behind his back to maintain the servant-like posture.

“Yeosang,” he was greeted by Jisoo who was making a good attempt to maintain her composure, “I need you and Mina to go ahead inside. I had to get a hold of Rosé and have her contact maintenance. The ride’s visuals just stopped and none of us can figure out why it won’t turn back on, Han and I will take over for you out here since he's a friendly face people can come up to. We just need you back in the control room with whoever they send down here so you can look like an escort in case a guest sees you.”

He nodded, “Do you just want me to-?”

Yeosang was cut off by the sight of what he assumed to be the technician walking speedily up to them. He was only an inch taller in height compared to Yeosang, but the manner with which he walked made him appear much bigger. 

Mina, who hadn’t been listening in, looked to Jisoo with a silent question. Jisoo put on a smile, “You can start your break now, don’t worry about it.”

Yeosang got distracted once more as he joined them. He could feel his head getting lighter, whether it was from the overwhelming amount of time he had spent outside or the boy in front of him he didn’t know.

“Okay,” Jisoo started, looking down at his name tag, “Jongho, this is Yeosang. He’ll show you inside and help you point out what’s wrong. Thank you for getting here so quickly, I don’t want to rush you but please try to fix it as soon as possible.”

Jongho bobbed his head up and down frantically, “Yeah, yes, I’ll do my best.”

Yeosang couldn’t help staring at him, his mouth dry as he took in the other’s features, “Follow me,” he said, thanking himself internally for keeping his voice stable.

He chose the route that’d get them inside without being seen by too many people, the music of the ride continuing to play and drown out the complaints of the guests. Yeosang heard a coworker explaining that they are “experiencing delays due to the restless spirits”. The two of them remained silent, not trying to draw too much attention to the single person entering ahead of them.

The cool, air conditioned breeze that hit him was a blessing, he audibly sighed and a quiet chuckle escaped from the boy behind him. He turned his head, “Huh?”

Jongho was smiling, but immediately tried to push it down when he locked eyes with him, “Oh, sorry, nothing,” he was quiet for a few seconds until Yeosang was about to look back, “It’s hot out there today.”

“Yeah, it is.”

His eyes scanned the wallpaper, made to look old with age and seemingly-antique decor occupying it. Sounds from within the ride would escape as the audio itself had not shut down.

They fell into another lull in conversation, but Yeosang didn’t mind, the quiet was welcomed. As they approached the small room, the darker the interior became. Yeosang knew of the small nooks and crannies within the building, choosing to take the route least detected by visitors and entering a small hallway that was blocked off by ropes. He grabbed a lanyard hanging next to the door and searched through the array of keys until he found the correct one.

The inside of the small room resembled that of a closet more than a professional tech room. Large box-shaped machinery lined the walls with control panels attached to each one, the last on the far left was completely turned off save for a string of blinking lights down the side. 

“Jennie told me it's the images in the ride that aren’t working, right?” Jongho asked, following in behind Yeosang as the latter flipped on the light.

It was almost blinding after walking through the darkness, he waited for his eyes to adjust before speaking, “Jisoo acted like they just stopped working without warning or any sign that they were going to freeze.”

Jongho shut the door behind them, and Yeosang moved to the far corner to stay out of the boy’s way, “I doubt it’s anything too major.”

He watched as the other examined the surface of the controls, eyes shifting between switches with a hand hovering above them. Yeosang swallowed, taking the opportunity to look over him while his back was turned.

Jongho was different from the tech guy that usually came around to help. He was young, probably younger than himself, and he looked strong through the long-sleeve button down uniform he wore. His body, which was stiff upon first impressions, moved with a fluidity now that he was around equipment and not nearly as many people. The shoulders that were once tense slowly lost their tightness, like a balloon losing air. Yeosang admired the quickness with which his hands moved across the board.

“So,” Jongho began, clearing his throat, “Does the ride do this often?” His posture straightened, visibly cringing at his own question.

He smiled to himself, finding his reaction endearing, “It’s not always visuals, sometimes it’s audio or the actual moving of the ride that fails. We usually get this really old guy to come and fix it because he’s familiar with the ride, but I haven’t seen him in a while since we haven’t had too many issues.”

The other nodded, “I think he quit because I came in, I started taking a lot of his regulars over in AdventureLand and he got really pissed one day, never came back.”

Yeosang allowed himself a light chuckle, “Good riddance, he was an asshole. He always blamed my friends here for the stuff breaking as if we even come in here to mess with it. Do you go all over the park?”

Jongho let out a small grunt, one that Yeosang refused to let his mind dwell on, “I usually stick between here, FrontierLand, and AdventureLand since I’m always in those areas anyway.”

“Then you know Hongjoong?” Yeosang asked. Hongjoong had been his roommate for a little under a year, it had been Wooyoung that introduced them at the beginning and the three settled on a place only ten minutes away from the park.

“I met with him yesterday, actually. There was an animatronic that was down at the Jungle Cruise and he had to show me back there. How do you know him if you’re all the way over here? I didn’t think ride employees got to leave their stations during the day unless they were on breaks.”

“He’s my roommate, actually, we met a while ago. He mentioned needing to call maintenance yesterday and having trouble with some of the guys under him,” Yeosang recalled Hongjoong ranting about a custodian, Seonghwa, who was a common name used in their apartment at this point.

Jongho sighed, “That has to be Seonghwa.”

Yeosang raised an eyebrow, curiosity taking over him, “You know him?”

“He’s _my_ roommate,” he answered.

Yeosang couldn’t help the growing interest in him, how coincidental was it that they had met today and their own friends shared a mutual disdain for one another, “Really? I bet he _hates_ Hongjoong, I honestly wouldn’t blame him, he can have a stick up his ass over meaningless shit.”

Jongho shrugged, messing with the switches along the top, “He doesn’t like to say much, always just brushing it off by telling me it’s not that big of a deal. When I was alone with Hongjoong, though, he was pretty cool. There’s a lot of stress in that guy, it basically radiates off of him.”

Yeosang knows all too well of what Jongho was referring to. He never got to meet Hongjoong before he worked as a supervisor, but Wooyoung would tell him stories of how he was really good to go to when he had trouble with anything. While that reigned true, it was harder to approach him when he rarely had an open attitude and mind to hearing others. The walls he put up were only getting higher and that was obvious, even to strangers. Hongjoong just didn’t know when to stop working. At the apartment, it was almost impossible to catch him doing something that didn’t involve his schedule or tasks he’d have planned out a week in advance. 

“You won’t believe how often I find paperwork all over the living room. There are empty mugs everywhere too, it’s like he’s addicted to caffeine.”

“It must be tiring to put up with Seonghwa, I don’t think there’s anything that’ll stop him from cleaning as much as he can possibly manage,” the younger man backed away from the controls a step.

Yeosang peered over from where he stood against the wall, all of the lights had come back on, blinking across the entirety of the bottom half rather than in a single line. Jongho turned to face him and Yeosang finally got to take a good look at him. His face flushed as big doe eyes stared back at him.

“It’s back on now, I’m pretty sure it was just a fluke that sent the system into a sort of lock-down. The problem shouldn’t happen again, but if it does just have Jisoo call in and I’ll come back,” he began to step towards the door.

“Wait,” he raised a hand as if about to reach out to him.

Jongho stopped rigidly, startled, “What? Is there something else?”

“No, no, there isn’t,” Yeosang mentally facepalmed, he was about to look so stupid, “Don’t you think it’d be smart to stay few minutes? Just to make sure it won’t shut right back down. I’d hate for you to leave only for us to have to ask for you to turn around and head back.”

The other’s expression morphed into one of confusion, and Yeosang wondered briefly how stupid he must look, “Oh… that makes sense, I guess. Usually it’s all set once I’m done.”

“A-And I don’t think it _will_ stop working, it’s just so hot outside and all… I didn’t think you’d want to go out there just yet,” he was actively trying to grab reasons for stopping him from thin air, but he wanted to continue talking with Jongho. There weren’t very many opportunities to get to know someone who didn’t work at the Mansion. So what if Yeosang found his shyness cute and wanted to keep chipping away at it?

“Sure,” he said, despite sounding completely _unsure_ about it, “I can stick around for a few more minutes, I think.”

Yeosang internally thanked whatever luck he had left for not coming across as strange, “You mentioned Seonghwa cleans everywhere, I know Hongjoong doesn’t exactly like it when he leaves his station.”

Jongo smiled softly, Yeosang’s breath stuttered, “Well, he doesn’t like being told where he can and can’t do his job. His whole philosophy is getting things done efficiently and over more areas to accomplish the most he can.”

“His logic isn’t flawed.”

“Hongjoong seems to believe it is,” the other’s face and body language was made clear by the bright light hanging above them, “He unknowingly went on a rant to me about Seonghwa, thinking that I had never met him. I’m pretty sure he was embarrassed about it afterwards because Seonghwa had to tell me something about our _other_ roommate in front of him. You could tell the little relief he had by venting immediately left his body.”

Yeosang had to keep himself from making his smile obvious; he was indulging himself in the way Jongho spoke, probably a little too much. He noticed how the latter’s sentences would start slow, hesitant and end with a tone that was a little more relaxed. There was a calm nature to him, with a nervous energy that would sometimes overtake his demeanor.

“Have you worked here for long?” Jongho asked him.

“Almost a year and a half, but I’ve always been at the Haunted Mansion.”

“I’m sure it’s nice to be able to go inside, especially on days like today.”

He let his eyes fall to the ground to look at his black shoes, “I guess,” he tugged a bit at the collar of his button down beneath the suit jacket, “Then again, I’m forced to stand outside for half of my shift. Jisoo plans on leaving though, and if she does then I’m next to take her position. I’ll have later hours and hopefully just have to be out there when it’s already getting cooler.”

“Where will she end up going?”

“I’m pretty sure she wants to go into guest services, she likes to organize a lot and usually doesn’t have a problem being rational enough to deal with annoyed tourists.”

Jongho nodded to his statement, looking at his own watch, “I should really go, it won’t be long until Jennie assigns me another location.”

“Of course, sorry, I shouldn’t have kept you here,” Yeosang prayed he wasn’t blushing.

“No, no, don’t say that. It’s okay, seriously, it was nice to escape the heat for a while. I’m sure I’ll be back at some point… so, I’ll see you around,” he offered a small upward turn of his lips.

“Yeah, definitely,” he lifted his hand to rub at his arm.

“I’ll see myself out,” Jongho spoke lightly, almost airily, “I know you don’t want to have to go back out there and stand in the heat when you could enjoy the air conditioning a little while longer.”

Yeosang was about to tell him that it didn’t matter, he would start his break soon anyway, but he had pulled open the door and walked away before he could say anything more. He stood unsteadily, taking his phone out of his pocket so fast he nearly dropped it. Scrolling through his contacts as smoothly as he could, he finally found the right one and started a call.

“Yeosang, I swear if you don’t hurry up I’m gonna miss the call for the three o’clock parade.”

He rolled his eyes at Wooyoung’s attitude, “I met a guy.”

There was the sound of clothes rustling and a door shutting on the other end of the line, “Wait, what? You never meet anybody, who is he? What’s his name?” He was whisper-shouting into the phone, trying to keep anyone from hearing him.

“It’s not that big of a deal, I really only spent like half an hour with him because he had to come fix the visuals.”

“So he’s a maintenance guy?” He sounded disgusted by the thought, “Aren’t they all really old? The Yeosang I know would never go after a sugar daddy.”

“I’m going to hang up and make you suffer through the whole day waiting until we’re back at the apartment tonight if you don’t shut up.”

“Okay, fine,” Wooyoung sighed into the speaker, “Tell me about him.”

Yeosang let quiet enthusiasm spark inside of him, “His name is Jongho, I think he’s our age, maybe a little younger, and he’s… I don’t even know.”

“Is he cute?”

“Kind of,” he leaned his back against the door to keep himself upright, “He’s cute in that boyish way and he gets so nervous. I don’t know exactly how long he’s worked here, but he knows the tech so well it was crazy to watch him. He’s quiet, too, but it suits him like that’s who he is naturally. The conversation seemed a little forced on his part, to be honest.”

“He was probably trying to tell if _you_ wanted to have a conversation,” there was a whiny, drawn out “aw” following his reaction, “That’s so thoughtful.”

“You’re delusional.”

“Says the one who’s falling for a guy he met for less than an hour.”

“I’m not _falling for him_. I just think he’s a little hot.”

“Oh my God, you did not just call a tech guy ‘hot’. There’s no way he’s that attractive and I’ve never met him before,” Wooyoung started, “You said he was boyish, though, how is that even possible to have a combination of both?”

“I don’t know, he pulls it off I can’t even explain it-”

He was cut off by a distant shout coming from Wooyoung’s end, “Sorry, I really need to go. This conversation isn’t over by the way, we’re gonna finish this at home. Maybe we can get Hongjoong to buy us all dinner from that takeout place and he can hear about this mystery guy too.”

“Well actually Hongjoong knows-”

“Bye!” 

The line died before he could finish. Yeosang sighed and slipped his phone back into its place in his pocket, taking a deep breath and letting his head fall back against the hard wood of the door. There was no way to explain the fluttery feeling in his chest, thinking back on the boy who occupied the room not even ten minutes ago. He hated strangers and never liked meeting new people that wouldn’t be long lasting, maybe Jongho was going to be the exception.


	5. At Last I See The Light

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> San never liked to cause trouble, at least not unintentionally, and while seeing those around him affected by the trials of the day he hadn't wanted to feel guilt for adding more to it. Waiting in a small, semi-abandoned dressing room beneath the Magic Kingdom is where he found a source of gentle light that replaced the harshness of the sun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello Hello !! I had a lot of fun writing this chapter and I hope you find it just as cute as I did. Things are definitely starting to pick up now ;) Feedback is always appreciated !!
> 
> p.s. I apologize in advance for a potentially strange upload schedule, nevertheless I'll try my best to get a chapter out every other day (no promises 0_0) Thanks you so much for taking the time to read <3

**Choi San**

**Position: Jungle Cruise Employee, Magic Kingdom Park**

San wiped the sweat that coated his forehead with the back of his hand, stepping off from his assigned boat and allowing his coworker to take over for him. He had been working for the past few hours without a break and without any water. It had been like a hot stove the day before, now it was like hell on earth. The sun was unobstructed by clouds, rays beating down on the heads of tourists and cast members alike. He told Jin he’d be taking his fifteen minute break, leaving to go into the tunnels and alleviate himself from the searing heat. When he left the shade of the ride’s waiting area he felt the weight of the air ten fold. In these moments he was grateful for not having to be a character or perform in the lengthy parades during weather like this.

When San had initially submitted an application for a position at Disney, he had also snagged an audition to be a performer. He doesn’t remember much of the process, trying to forget about it after not making it. The one thing he did remember was meeting Hongjoong for the first time a short while after, he was assigned to the Jungle Cruise while the other was a greeter at the Pirate’s of the Carribean ride. There was a short period where San didn’t talk to many of the other cast members he was introduced to, still bitter over not being selected.

Hongjoong was the first one who didn’t try hard to get to know him when they ran into each other on their break. He was the first one who just offered to sit in silence, not wanting to talk about work when that was all they had in common and they didn’t need to know anymore about it. They met up every once in a while, only to just have some quiet. It was only when San wanted to pursue a friendship with him that their dynamic changed, Hongjoong letting him be in control of their interactions. He was the only other person than Mingi that San opened up to about the whole thing. 

He didn’t feel sorry for him, he didn’t tell him to never give up either, he just let San speak until he ran out of words. Only then did Hongjoong say that there was no way to control those sorts of things, they were in the hands of others that he couldn’t have an influence on. He encouraged San to enjoy his job for what it was, appreciating the performance aspects as well as the benefits that he wouldn’t have had if he did get accepted. Hongjoong didn’t ignore the faults, though, telling him it’s better to accept that he hadn’t gotten the spot he wanted and to make the best of what he had. 

San passed by Pirates, spotting Seonghwa picking up some unidentifiable trash off of the ground. He didn’t think twice before diverting his path to walk towards him.

“Hey, Seonghwa,” he spoke up brightly.

The other stood with a muted groan, having to squint as he turned to look at him, “Oh, hey, what’s up? Is something wrong?”

San ran a hand through his hair, “No, nothing, I’m just on break right now and wanted to walk around, maybe escape the sun.”

“I know I would do the same if I could,” he blinked a few times, “I think the sun makes the tourists lazier, I’ve had to pick up ice cream wrappers and empty bottles around every turn. This one man looked me right in the eyes before leaving his half-finished smoothie on the ground for me to clean up after him.”

“The guests haven’t been all that great to me either. I had three silent boats in a row and a kid kept on climbing over the boxes, when I told him to stop his mother scoffed at me. I think it’s just a today thing, most of the time they can be good passengers and at least show that they heard me. It’s hard to make jokes to an audience that won’t even smile or look in my direction.”

Seonghwa placed a hand on his hip and kicked at the ground, “Have you seen Hongjoong around today? Usually he’s patrolling the area like a hawk and is following my every move. I haven’t seen him since we had that animatronic issue a few days ago with you.”

San scratched at the place beneath his ear, “I mean I saw him yesterday a couple times and this morning once, but I didn’t get to talk to him. He looked really tired though, I think he had to lecture some of the workers over at the Aladdin ride. Jin heard it was something about them letting people with drinks get on the ride and it spilling everywhere. He had to deal with a lot of complaints from the parents with crying kids, you know how irritable they can get when the younger ones start throwing tantrums.”

The other nodded, “I’m not used to being left alone this long, I feel like I’m gonna turn around and he’s going to be right behind me. It’s driving me crazy.”

His eyes fell on an approaching figure behind Seonghwa, and they widened, “You won’t believe what I’m about to tell you.”

“What?” His eyebrows knit together in confusion.

“Turn around,” San replied, stifling a laugh the best he could manage.

He whipped around, jumping back slightly upon seeing Hongjoong walking up to them with his head down to keep his face out of the sun. A hand came up to rub at his eyes, pressing against the sockets.

Seonghwa immediately changed his stance to one of subtle defence, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back on one foot, “Speak of the devil and he shall appear, I suppose,” he muttered to himself.

When Hongjoong actually made it up to them his eyes didn’t lift from the ground, “Seonghwa, could you head over to Aladdin? The custodian I assigned to that area today didn’t come in and nobody notified me until now. They had an accident there this morning where two drinks got spilled on one of the carpets, the ride is running and they have it blocked off. It’s just better to go over there to clean it now than later,” his voice caught San and Seonghwa off guard, and they took a quick glance at each other before looking back at Hongjoong. He sounded exhausted, there was an edge to his voice that wasn’t quite anger and charged with what San guessed to be frustration. His shoulders were tense, sagging beneath some unseeable pressure.

“Yeah, okay, sure,” Seonghwa answered, arms falling to his sides upon realizing there was no bite to the other’s words. San watched as he scanned the shorter up and down and then back up again, “Is there anything else?”

“No, just do it, please,” Hongjoong sighed heavily, as if it took too much effort to speak and stay upright at the same time.

“I’ll head over right now,” He looked like he wanted to say more, the corners of his lips turning downward, but he said nothing and began to walk away.

Hongjoong lifted his head the moment Seonghwa’s footsteps faded into the crowd of people walking past them. San took a step back, whispering a soft “ _ shit _ ” when he saw the face staring back at him. Hongjoong looked more worn out than he had seen in a  _ long  _ time, his eyes were hazy and the high temperatures made his flushed face redder, “Woah, are you okay? Do you need to sit down or something? I can get you a water if you need one, we have them back at Jungle Cruise.”

“I’m fine, I just didn’t get enough sleep last night, it’s nothing,” Hongjoong’s vision fell to the chest pocket on San’s khaki shirt, “Where’s your name tag?”

His heart jumped in his chest, “What?” He looked down to see that the space where the tag was meant to occupy was empty, “I-I must’ve left it in my car this morning.”

“Nobody offered you one?” He asked, tone undetectable. 

“No, I don’t think we have any…,” he waited for Hongjoong to yell at him, or at least tell him to go take one from somebody.

“You’re on your break?”

“Yeah, I should have like five minutes.”

Hongjoong hummed to himself, pulling the walkie-talkie out of his pocket and pressing a few buttons, “This is Kim Hongjoong, Jin do you copy?”

“I copy,” laughter could be heard faintly on the other end, “What’s up?”

“San’s break will need an extension. He can explain when he gets back-”

“Don’t worry about it,” Jin spoke casually, “It’s not a big deal, we have enough people here to work everything. I’ll probably just take over his boat myself.”

The wrinkle in Hongjoong’s brow smoothed, “Thank you, it shouldn’t be long-,” there was the sound of the connection shutting off before Hongjoong could finished, he forced the walkie-talkie into his pocket with an irritated huff, “Follow me, I’m sure there are some costume people in the tunnels with extras,” he started in the direction of the entrance to the tunnel just around the corner of the Pirates of the Caribbean gift shop.

“Sorry, Hongjoong, I didn’t even notice I forgot it,” the thing was, San felt genuinely guilty for not remembering to pin it on, “I could just go by myself if you want?”

The older took a few deep breaths, pushing open the “Cast Members Only” door. 

“Don’t forget it again next time then,” he gritted out, stopping where he was walking to the set of stairs, “Sorry… you’re on your break already anyway, it doesn’t hurt to let it go a little longer on a day like this.”

“Hongjoong, I know you hate it when people say this but, I think you need a day off or at least do something about your stress,” San tried to make his voice gentle, not wanting him to get defensive, “You look really bad today, like, tired.”

“Wow, thanks San.”

“I just mean that you haven’t been yourself in a really long time, I…,” San struggled to find the right words, “I’m worried about you, you know?”

Hongjoong met San’s gaze, something in his eyes telling him to stop pressing, “I’m fine, really, let’s go.”

He felt himself deflate, following mutely. The people San chose to be close to were the ones he wanted to help the most. Hongjoong may not have thought of San as someone important to him, he likely didn’t think much of him at all, but that wouldn’t stop him from caring. There was an underlying sadness about him, something that he couldn’t shake, and knowing that he used to be so relaxed only a year ago made his now visible stress he had nearly every day all the harder to witness. 

San brushed a hand over the cool walls as they reached the entrance of the tunnel, seeing a few abandoned chairs along the wall, a lengthy clothing rack with costumes thrown haphazardly over it, and doors lining the walls on the opposing side. He rarely came down here himself, never having a reason to unless it was to take his break near the stairwell. The lighting was painfully artificial. The whiteness of it washed out the grey walls and cast shadows that made the bags under Hongjoong’s eyes appear deeper and darker than before.

“You can wait in that dressing room,” Hongjoong pointed to the third door on his left, “Nobody is really ever assigned there and it’s usually where performers just store their personal belongings or old costumes. Don’t go anywhere, I’ll look for BamBam. He should know where to find some name tags…,” he began to walk off in the other direction, “Don’t touch anything!”

He moved swiftly to the door, turning the handle and using his shoulder to push it open. The room was tiny, probably only big enough to fit four people in and still have a reasonable amount of space. There was a single set up with a makeup mirror, desk, and chair, a stack of large boxes against one wall and a shelving unit on the other with clothes, costumes, and bags shoved randomly into the open slots. Spilled glitter covered a portion of the exposed floor, forcing San to step around the mess to sit down. With an exaggerated huff he collapsed into the chair and groaned, finally feeling relief from standing all day. He leaned his head back to stare blankly at the ceiling, wondering if Mingi noticed he hadn’t stopped by for his four o’clock break.

Mingi had been distracted lately, too. There were nights where he would get home almost an hour after the regular closing time and San would stay up waiting until he got home. He would always feel horrible for not getting back sooner, telling San to just go to bed if he wasn’t home. Staying up was comforting to him, though, making sure that whoever he lived with returned safely helped him sleep better at night. He didn’t want Mingi to be rushed, but he couldn’t help wanting to know where he was. As far as San knew, he didn’t have many friends outside of Wendy and some guys in FantasyLand.

The sound of the door bursting open startled him from his thoughts, he flailed to keep his balance and turned around so fast he almost fell. A boy stood with his mouth open in shock and a hand still on the door knob. He had dark brown, almost black, hair that was tossed in a way that looked  _ too  _ good to be natural. His tan skin was unblemished, with cheeks that weren’t quite rounded but rather curved smoothly from his cheekbone to his jaw. Full lips fell shut immediately as the initial surprise wore off.

“Who are you? What are you doing here?” A silvery voice asked, a pushiness hidden in his words.

San stood immediately, nearly stumbling over his own feet, “I’m San. My supervisor told me to wait here while he left to find me a name tag. I work-”

“Jungle Cruise,” the other finished for him, eyebrows raising, “I can tell by the uniform.”

He suddenly felt self-conscious, intimidated by the boy who stood no more than five feet away from him, “Yeah… I-I’m sorry, did you need something from in here? Do you want me to leave?”

“You’re okay, it’s fine,” he walked further into the room to the shelves, taking a black bag from it and moving the contents around carefully, “I’m Wooyoung by the way.”

“San.”

Wooyoung laughed behind his closed mouth, “You mentioned that.”

He ran a hand through his hair, smiling shyly, “Oh, right… A-Are you a character?”

“Huh?” He looked up from his bag with wide eyes the color of melted chocolate, “No, No, not regularly. I’m one of the performers in the parades, usually just a street dancer around the floats.”

“That explains why I’ve never seen you before.”

“And the fact you work on a boat all day,” he took a drink of a water bottle he pulled from deep within the bag, “It’s hot out there isn’t it?”

“Blazing, I could never have been one of the mascot people and be forced to wear those heavy costumes all day. That seems like a nightmare to haul yourself around in, it’s like being baked in an oven,” San twisted his face in disgust.

Wooyoung’s laugh rang out, excited and youthful, “It’s really not fun at all, they subbed me in for Winnie the Pooh once last year when I was a newbie. The worst part is being hugged by the kids who just won’t let go.”

“Did you just get here or did you do the three o’clock?” San scratched at his scalp.

“The three, but I stay through closing since I’m not considered ‘one of the big guys’ up on the floats. I’m assuming you stay until closing too, then?”

He nodded, smiling sweetly, “Mhm.”

“So we both still have a while to go,” Wooyoung leaned against the shelves, “You left your name tag, right? How long have you been waiting here?”

San looked over at the clock.

“That one doesn’t work, it’s been busted for months.”

He shook his head, “It hasn’t been long, only-”

The door was pushed open once more with Hongjoong now occupying the doorway, “Okay, so I finally found- Oh, hey Wooyoung.”

“Hi, Joong,” his grin was teasing, “I was just having a little conversation with San about a forgotten name tag. Did you manage to actually track down BamBam to snag one?”

“He is one of the hardest people to find in this damn park. I don’t know how you people get anything done down here, there’s no organization or authority,” Hongjoong turned the small piece of plastic once over in his hand before passing it to San who put it on without a second thought.

“It’s called anarchy, Joong, that’s how we like it down here,” Wooyoung made his way past him to the door, casting a look back at San, “It was nice meeting you San… I mean Charlie,” he left with a giggle that reminded San of bells.

“Charlie?” He looked down and pulled his shirt from his body to read the bold print, “Charlie it is, I guess.”

Hongjoong shrugged, “Options were limited. Come on you should get back, I can’t let you hang around the whole day.”

They began walking together once again to the stairwell, “How do you know him?” San asked.

“Who? Wooyoung? He’s my roommate. Why do you ask?”

“He seems cool, that’s all. I think I’d get along with him.”   


Hongjoong nodded, “You would, he’s annoying just like you.”

San’s mouth dropped open, “What did I do to deserve that?”

“You left your name tag at home, that’s what.”

He pouted, “I didn’t mean to.”

“And yet, here we are,” Hongjoong sped up, “Hurry or else I’ll tell Jin to take away your next break.”

San didn’t hesitate to do as he said, the airy feeling in his chest making every step lighter as Wooyoung’s jingling laughter echoed through him.


	6. Part of Your World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Waiting around at night for one last customer may not sound like something to look forward to for most. To Mingi, though, it was the best part of his day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys !! So so sorry for not posting a chapter yesterday :( Hopefully this one is worth it though !! Feedback is always appreciated, enjoy <3
> 
> p.s. i won’t blame you for falling in love with yunho in this chapter, i lowkey did too

**Song Mingi**

**Position: Plaza Ice Cream Parlor Employee, Magic Kingdom Park**

Mingi leaned heavily against the counter, an expression of worry taking over his features. Wendy had already left for the night after telling him to run a quick wipe down over the counter and to lock up the freezer. He stayed almost twenty minutes after finishing up and there had been no sign of Yunho. Usually, he would come in directly after closing when all of the tourists were still making their way out of the park, but he still hadn’t come in and it was starting to unsettle him.

He tapped his fingers against the surface, debating in his head if he should leave and close up the place for the night or wait a little longer just in case Yunho was running late. It wasn’t like him at all to not show up, he had never missed a day since his first time coming into the parlor. Mingi shifted his weight from foot to foot, impatience still trying to get the best of him. He pulled out his phone, scrolling through social media idly and sending a text to San about not waiting up for him. San didn’t take long to reply, telling him not to worry and he’d stay up anyway. 

His roommate didn’t know about Yunho, and he didn’t press Mingi when he asked why he always stayed so late. He trusted San, he knew he could tell him something as trivial as seeing a friend for a few minutes after work everyday, but he was convinced that if he told someone about him that he would disappear. Realistically, that wouldn’t happen, some rational part of Mingi knew that, and it wasn’t like Yunho didn’t actually want to see him. Mingi hoped that he held the same feelings as he did. Behind an innate desire to see the other, deeper attractions took root. His heart would pound in his chest when the bell over the door would ring and he would look up to see a tall man standing with a warm smile and a request for a small vanilla cone with a cherry on his lips.

Every interaction they had usually ended with Mingi oversharing a little too much about his day and life. He’d always feel bad for taking up Yunho’s time by talking when he could do more important things or talk about himself more. He always dismissed his worries, telling Mingi that he didn’t mind when he’d talk for longer than what most people would say is necessary.

Mingi shot up at the sound of the small bell, nearly tripping over his bag he had placed next to his feet. His eyes locked on a figure at the door, Yunho was breathing heavily and used the door frame to hold himself up.

“Mingi… I didn’t think this place was still open,” relief visibly flooded through him, “I was worried you had already closed. You won’t believe the accident that happened right near my apartment, it was so hard to even get out of the parking lot. I hit almost every stop light on the way here, I even saw Seonghwa pulling in by the time I was leaving. Hey, are you okay?”

All of the blood had drained from his face and he was shaking, he must’ve looked terrified, “I-I… Yes, you just scared me that’s all. I thought you weren’t going to come in, but I didn’t want to leave and…”

“You waited for me,” Yunho beamed, reminding Mingi of a puppy in the way his eyes shined.

He felt a buzzing beneath his skin, “Of course I did, you always come in, I didn’t want to miss you in case you decided to stop by. You want your usual?”

Yunho walked further into the shop, meeting Mingi at the counter where he placed one elbow against the surface, “Yeah, but make it two scoops of vanilla and two cherries in a bowl this time,” a redness bloomed over the highest part of his cheeks and ears.

Mingi started getting his order together, not about to waste time, “So, have you slept well today? I know your air conditioning has been broken and it’s been crazy hot out there lately; since you sleep during the day sometimes I’m sure it gets too hot for it to be comfortable.”

“Thankfully they repaired it yesterday, the banging kept waking me up while the repair guys were working, though. Today was better, I blasted it the entire time and it felt amazing. Blankets are really taken for granted,” he joked, “Seonghwa decided to bless me by leaving some of the leftover food he made in the fridge. He called me on his way home today and, do you remember that supervisor over there that always gives him trouble?”

“Yeah?” Mingi replied, grabbing for the cherries and placing them on the top scoop so they were side by side.

“Well he hasn’t said much to him at all in the past two days, he went on a ten minute tangent about how strange it’s been not getting yelled at.”

“Shouldn’t that be something he’s grateful for?”

Yunho threw his hands up in the air, “That’s what I said, but Seonghwa just complained that there was something off about him. I don’t know. He’s been acting weird, what about you? Two spoons, please.”

Mingi didn’t give it a second thought, grabbing the spoons and handing them both to Yunho as he slid the ice cream across to him, “The amount of people that came in here was more than I’ve personally had to deal with since I first started working at this place. There was never a time when the line wasn’t out the door, Wendy and I had to grab Jeongin from the back to help us out. He has some magical power that stops the pissed off customers from going off on him.”

With a nod, Yunho moved the cup so it sat directly between them, holding one spoon out and keeping the other close to him.

He stared at the silent offering, “For me?”

“There are two cherries and two scoops for a reason, what’d you think the spoons were for?” Yunho raised an eyebrow at him, a lopsided grin forming.

Mingi blushed so hard he thought he must’ve looked like one of the cherries, “I didn’t even think of it like that… Are you sure?” His hand hesitated in the air.

“Yeah, you had a hard day and you decided to stay even later for me. You deserve some ice cream too,” Yunho pushed the spoon into his hand, causing their hands to brush against one another. He’s always so  _ warm _ . 

Mingi blinked a few times, eyes locked on Yunho as the latter took a spoonful of ice cream. The scene looked so  _ familiar _ and Mingi felt lightheaded from where he stood, frozen in place. The other’s posture was relaxed, comfortable as he was propped up and lifting the spoon to his mouth. 

“Aren’t you going to have any?” He asked. 

“Yeah… Sorry, I think I zoned out for a minute,” he shook his hand and moved to be closer to the cup, mimicking Yunho’s position. 

“Tell me more about today, did anything else interesting happen?”

“Well, San didn’t stop in at all which was really strange. I didn’t even get a text from him telling me he was taking his break somewhere else. He did call me on his way home, though, said his supervisor looked absolutely wrecked today. Apparently, San left something he needed in his car and he couldn’t leave to get it, so when that guy found him he looked just about half dead. Anyway, you probably don’t want to hear about my roommate,” he took a bite and let the ice cream melt in his mouth before moving on, “I’m thinking of planning to go to Downtown this weekend on my day off, maybe actually use my company discount on some things for once. I should probably get something for San to make up for being so late every night.”

Yunho’s movement stuttered, eyes falling to the bowl in front of them, “Sorry, I shouldn’t have come in tonight.”

Mingi’s brain went into overdrive, “No, please, please, don’t say that. I love it when you come in, I just meant that I haven’t told San  _ why  _ I stay-”

“Wait, you haven’t told anyone that you wait around here for me?” Yunho’s eyes glinted, wide with expectancy and some emotion Mingi couldn’t quite name.

He could feel heat rush to his face, “I mean… Wendy knows, obviously, but I haven’t told anybody else about it. Is… Is that bad? Did you want me to?” His chest felt tight, worry blooming inside of him at the thought that Yunho could be offended for being kept a secret.

“I haven’t told anyone about you, either,” he replied honestly, lips parted as he breathed, “That’s not bad at all, I’m actually kind of… happy, I guess.”

“Why didn’t you tell anyone?” Mingi questioned.

The other shrugged, “I kind of wanted a friend for myself, you know? I don’t get to have very many of them since I rarely get to see my roommates for long periods of time and I don’t see the other guards around here unless we accidentally cross paths. They never really want to talk to me… I meant what I said a few days ago when I told you it gets lonely,” Yunho didn’t sound heartbroken, he was more so despondent.

Mingi felt his shoulders sag, shifting so he was just the smallest bit closer to him, “I think I kind of wanted that too, but it’s different. You’re the only one that I have, that isn’t San, who listens to me, I wanted to keep you for myself.”

Yunho placed his spoon into the empty cup, “Mingi, I know that we don’t get to see each other too much, but you’re one of the closest people to me. I never get to talk about this sort of thing with Seonghwa and I never want to put stress on Jongho when he’s already under so much. When you let me in here, it’s the ten or fifteen or twenty minutes I spend with you that are my only moments around someone that doesn’t live with me.”

He could feel goosebumps rising on his skin, staring at Yunho as the others eyes ran over his face, “I  _ want  _ to be that for you. I look forward to closing every night because I want to see you, that’s why I waited.”

The older wet his lips, gaze falling slightly lower below Mingi’s eyes, “Mingi…” His voice faltered, drifting.

He swallowed hard, “Yeah?”

“Can I-?”

“Jeong Yunho, do you copy?” The static of the walkie-talkie struck Yunho like lightning, he jumped back from where he was face to face with Mingi to pull it from his pocket and lift it to his ear.

“Yes, yeah, I copy, JK. What’s up?” He sounded hoarse, like his throat was dry and he desperately needed a drink of water.

“I can see the lights to the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor are on from the castle. Are you checking it out?”

“I’m in here now, there's an employee who stayed late to do some restock so I came in to check on them. They’re heading out now, I’ll be escorting them to the exit. Thank you for checking in.”

“Of course, stay safe. Over and out,” the static stopped and Yunho took his finger off of the button to look back at Mingi.

“I’m really sorry, I shouldn’t have kept you this long. Come on,” he offered an apologetic smile, “I’ll walk you.

Mingi picked his bag up off the ground, putting his hat back on his head loosely, “Oh, thank you.”

Yunho took the cup, walking to the door to hold it open for him and Mingi’s elbow grazed the fabric of his shirt. The air was cooler now with the sun fully set and a few hours of darkness already having passed. The moon was the only thing visible in the sky, it’s light blocked by clouds and the stars having semi-disappeared from the light pollution of the surrounding cities. He took a deep breath in, letting his lungs fill with it and taking the key ring from his belt loop to lock the doors.

“So,” he began, “that JK guy sounds really serious about what he’s doing.”

“He can be. He’s the kind of guy that works really well by himself, but he always likes to interact once a night with the other patrol people so that they can confirm everything is okay in their section. Sometimes I’ll see him walking this guy out from over in FantasyLand, that’s the only person outside of the security team I have seen him talk to.”

Mingi hummed, “I should be staying longer, then, if it’s normal. Why didn’t you ever ask me to?” They began to walk alongside each other.

“I didn’t want to be a bother, you’re already so tired by closing you shouldn’t have to stay any longer than you have to. You mentioned before that San can never sleep until you’re back at the apartment, if it’s going to keep him up the last thing I’d ask you to do is keep me company.”

He gripped the strap of his bag harder, thinking, “San likes to say he wants to make sure I get home safe, I think he’s kind of like you.”

Yunho raised an eyebrow, “What do you mean?”

“I know he cares, and I don’t doubt that he wants to make sure I make it back okay, but I really know that deep down he just doesn’t want to be alone in our apartment. He just needs company the same way you do. I can practically see him on our couch, right now, with his phone next to him debating if he should text me again,” Mingi laughed to himself over the last part, looking to Yunho who must have had his eyes locked on him for some while.

There was something in his eyes that told Mingi that he didn’t need to speak anymore, not in a way that was harsh or begging, it was a request told in the depth they held. They walked in silence, soaking up the final minutes they had with one another as they approached the exit. Mingi felt his heart swell in his chest choking him, as he recalled the numb feeling in his head and body back at the parlor. He thought belatedly of what he might’ve done if Yunho were to kiss him. With a harsh shake of his head he forced that idea away; fantasies like that weren’t meant to be had when Yunho was walking next to him. A feeling akin to a heavy rock fell in his stomach, not wanting their night to end quite yet once they made it to the entrance garden.

Mingi took a deep breath, focusing on his words, “Would you want to go with me to Downtown this weekend?” He asked quickly, refusing to make eye contact with the other, “It can be whenever you want since you spend some of your day sleeping. I know it might be an inconvenience, but I just want to hang out as, like, real friends… Sorry, that sounds dumb. We already  _ are  _ real friends, I just-”

“I’d like that.”

His head shot up, anxiety washing through and out of his body as though a bucket of ice water had been poured on him. Yunho wore a quiet smile, one that Mingi desperately wanted to make permanent, “You would?”

“Yeah, I haven’t been out with friends that I don’t live with in a long time. It’d be nice,” he spoke gently, obviously trying to make Mingi more comfortable now that he managed to ask in the first place.

“Okay, yeah, I can pick you up if you want?”

Yunho shook his head, “You really don’t have to do that.”

“No, I asked you, it wouldn’t be very good of me not to at least offer.”

The older’s smile grew wider, “Fine, can I give you my number then? It’d make things easier.”

Mingi nodded immediately, snatching his phone from his pocket and going through it to find his contacts, “Here,” he passed his phone over, the screen lighting up his face.

Yunho typed it in slowly, almost agonizingly so, torturing his own impatience.

“There you go,” he handed it back with ease, seemingly cool while Mingi was about to explode with the intensity of his embarrassment and excitement bursting inside of him.

“Thank you,” Mingi licked his lips nervously, “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“You always do,” he rubbed at his arm, a soothing gesture for himself that told Mingi that this meant as much to Yunho as it did to him.

“Goodnight,” Mingi began to walk away, waving as he did so and adding a peace sign for good measure. 

“You too, get home safe!”

“I always do!” he called back to him, his chest loosening enough to let him huff out a laugh to himself.

Mingi felt like he was walking on air, like he wasn’t as tethered to the ground as he typically tended to feel. Yunho’s words crowded his mind, running over and over again like a record that he couldn’t get tired of listening to. He wanted to tell someone, he wanted to tell San, but something in him told him to wait. This was special, even if his feelings weren’t returned, what he and Yunho had was private and Mingi refused to spoil that. Walking down the empty streets to his car was when he let himself relive the moment in the ice cream parlor. He allowed himself to imagine what it would have been like if Yunho had kissed him, if the sensation would have been soft and light or hard and passionate. His lips would have been sweet, tasting of vanilla. He wondered briefly what he would have done, he’d embarrass himself, probably, but in his mind he’d hold onto him and keep himself steady. Mingi pressed his fingers to his lips, wishing that he had been brave enough to kiss him first.


	7. Someday My Prince Will Come

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wooyoung enjoyed playing the role of a nameless, faceless prince in the parades. There were just some days when he needed to sit back and let someone else take the metaphorical reigns for once, or, rather, the steering wheel of a boat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Howdy !! I had so much fun writing this chapter, seriously, the jokes in this are worth saying out loud to yourself. I'm really grateful for all of the feedback and I hope you guys can tolerate the messiness that is bound to ensue soon enough. Thank you so much for reading, stay healthy <3
> 
> p.s. some moments within this chapter are inspired by real-life events 0_0 and when I said to read the jokes out loud, I meant it, they make more sense that way lol

**Jung Wooyoung**

**Position: Street Performer, Magic Kingdom**

Wooyoung took a deep breath in, holding for four seconds and exhaling for four more. There was something about the post-performance rush that made his anxiety shoot higher than the moments leading up to it. His heartbeat was racing in his chest as he walked through the tunnels, sweat coating every inch of him. He walked alongside a few of the other dancers, trying to calm himself when they approached the dressing rooms.

The parade itself went well, they got their usual round of cheers and the crowds are always big in the summer. There was something about the few minutes just before he stepped out with his group that let his mind go completely blank. When he had auditioned he had felt the same way, his brain would clear completely and he’d shake the lingering nervousness from his limbs. Everyday was already planned out for him: he’d arrive at two o’clock to get ready for the three o’clock parade, have a break from four to five, train and rehearse until eight, then prepare for the nine o’clock parade. It was enough for him, more than enough. During his free hour he’d enjoy the park, keeping to the other friends he trained with. Sometimes, though, they’d go elsewhere on their own and leave Wooyoung to wander the tunnels or sit in the dressing rooms without company. 

More often than not, Wooyoung would inevitably start blowing up Yeosang’s phone out of sheer boredom until the other was on his fifteen minute break to answer. Prior to working as a performer, he lived with Yeosang when they worked at Downtown Disney together in their college years. He’d made sure to stay with the other with every transfer. When Yeosang could only find work at the Magic Kingdom, Wooyoung turned down Hollywood Studios without question and chose to follow his friend. It wasn’t uncommon for him to stray from the tunnels on his meal break to find the other to eat at some place in Liberty Square, just to spend time together. Though, Yeosang mentioned that he was about to take on Jisoo’s position and couldn’t spend as much time away from the Mansion anymore.

“Hey, Wooyoung, I’m going to go find Hoseok and head over to FantasyLand,” Jimin said, stopping in front of one of the dressing room doors, “don’t wait around for us, yeah?”

“Oh, okay. Say hi to him for me,” Wooyoung smiled, waving to him as he walked off.

“I will!” Jimin called back, walking inside and leaving him alone in the tunnel.

Wooyoung continued towards the storage room, always preferring to keep his personal belongings in there rather than the larger rooms that were always crowded with people. Nobody was ever in this room, at least not until that boy Hongjoong brought down here, but the chances of them meeting again were slim to none. Upon opening the door he was greeted with the same mess that was always there, unmoving. After slipping out of the prince costume as delicately as he could manage, he threw on the t-shirt he had brought along with him and the lightest sweatpants he owned. 

He wondered if he should leave to find Hongjoong, just to preoccupy himself with some form of entertainment in the next hour. Although, his attitude had made him less of the guy Wooyoung had met last year when the former was training as a character attendant. They got along quickly, Hongjoong explaining just how much he enjoyed the change from his old job every time he walked the younger to his character spot. The longer he held the supervisor position, the more obvious it became to Wooyoung, as well as Yeosang, how much it was starting to get to him.

“Maybe I should see what he’s up to,” he muttered to himself, though it sounded loud in the empty room.

With a harsh tug on the door, he began to make his way to the AdventureLand Cast Members’ entrance. He drifted up the stairs, not paying attention to the few people that passed by him. The day was cooler, the rain having stopped earlier that afternoon and leaving the air with a gentle, watery breeze as a light drizzle came down. It was a nice change from the days of endless heat. The path wasn’t as filled, several of the tourists had escaped for mid-afternoon meals and indoor attractions. There were darker clouds coming their way, another storm is bound to start before the next hour. Wooyoung stuck close to the edge, watching a tall, raven- haired custodian lift a bag from a trash can and put it in a transport bin.

His eyes fell onto Hongjoong. He stood with his shoulders hunched, back bent over a clipboard he was scribbling words onto like his life depended on it. From where he was, Wooyoung could tell the other had been having a long day. His hands shook, brow furrowed in concentration and face drained of the liveliness he used to carry, “Hey, Joong,” he made an effort to sound lighthearted.

Hongjoong raised his head, eyes clouded with irritation, “What do you want?”

“Aren’t you supposed to be nice to everyone who comes to you? Where’s that classic supervisor smile?” He teased.

The other rolled his eyes, “I don’t have time for this, what do you need?”

“I just wanted to check up on you, I haven’t gotten the chance to in a while since you’ve been so busy,” he shrugged with a smile.

“I still  _ am  _ busy,” Hongjoong shook his head, cursing, “I’m doing quality checks today, I’m reviewing every worker beneath me for the next week and I’m making my way through the first few.”

“What do you have to review for quality checks?” Wooyoung peered over the shorter man’s shoulder, reading over the list of names and check boxes. 

He took a deep breath and looked back down at his clipboard, beginning as though he were talking to himself rather than Wooyoung, “I have to go through every ride and attraction, observe the quality of every employee's work for a while, then send the reviews to management who makes the decisions as to whether or not we get to keep our jobs over here. I’ve already completed Swiss Family Robinson and Aladdin since they have very few workers, only greeters and ushers. I’ll probably be spending the next few hours at Jungle Cruise,  _ God,  _ it’s going to take  _ forever  _ and I’ll have to listen to so many puns,” he squeezed the bridge of his nose with one hand, “I have a headache.”

“I could go with you,” Wooyoung offered, “I’m off for the next hour so I can hit it at least once or twice.”

Hongjoong glanced up at him, scanning over his face multiple times and searching for something in his expression, “I guess I could let you, it won’t do any harm,” he poked the cap of his pen against Wooyoung’s chest, “But don’t be a distraction, I can’t have you interrupting me while I’m writing or the skippers while they’re acting, got it?”

“I promise,” he nodded with vigor, “Lead the way.”

He followed after him as he started on their way to the Jungle Cruise, Hongjoong kept his head down and continued to check things off. Wooyoung held the older’s elbow as they walked down the steps to make sure he wouldn’t trip. They stood in silence in the line, Hongjoong hiding behind him so he wasn’t as visible to the workers. He heard the other grumble to himself, “Those two girls should be paying attention, the kids just walked into the FastPass lane and they didn’t even try to stop them.”

Wooyoung didn’t bother with a response, instead watching as more dark clouds rolled in above them. He tuned out the voice that came over the intercom, regurgitating the same script over and over again. There were ropes that blocked off people from cutting, boxes and other items associated with exploration scattered throughout the waiting area. Children stood tiredly, this hour usually being the typical nap time for them. There was a group of teenagers a few feet ahead, leaning against the posts and swiping through their phones. Everyone moved languidly, the weather making the air feel heavy with humidity and the tourists slow. Rain started to come down slightly harder, hitting the roof and the tops of the boats in a near silent rhythm.

“Move forward,” Hongjoong commanded, voice monotone.

With a nod, he moved on brushing his hand over a small cage made of wood and barbed wire that held a fake tarantula within it. The small animatronic moved, shaking the box and causing Wooyoung to jump back, he knocked into Hongjoong who stumbled over a bit.

“Watch it,” the other shrugged him off, scoffing, “We’re next,” he inclined his head towards the incoming boat, the name  _ Sengal Sal _ was displayed across the sign placed on the top cover.

The usher’s face brightened upon seeing them, “Hongjoong! Nice to see you coming through here, it’s always a pleasure.”

“As per usual, Jin, you never fail to run a tight ship,” Hongjoong replied sarcastically, not looking up, “Make sure you snag those two girls from the front and switch them with some of the monitors in here.”

The man, Jin, dropped his smile, “Of course, I will immediately. Please, enjoy the ride and take a break from the list. You know this skipper well enough, there is really no need to dwell on the quality of his work,” his voice was encouraging and carried a graceful authority that Wooyoung admired.

Hongjoong simply nodded, waving a hand for him to follow behind the other onto the boat.

“Yeah that’s right, all the way to the front of the boat. Come on now, don’t waste time, exploration awaits me- us, I mean us,” the skipper’s voice sounded familiar, “Hey, Hongjoong, I wasn’t expecting you today.”

He grunted in the boy’s general direction, “Quality checks, keep it together, San.”

Wooyoung’s eyes met those of the skipper’s, “Hi,” he waved.

“Hey, you,” he grinned, dimples deepening, “You’re the guy I met in the tunnels yesterday.”

“That’s me,” he kept his voice sweet.

“I’ll try not to embarrass myself too much. If nobody laughs, I’m counting on you,” San’s cheeks colored, “I guess I just  _ did  _ embarrass myself by saying that,” he took his hat off and ran a hand through his hair, “I’d shut up, but, lucky me, it's my job to keep talking for the next ten to fifteen minutes.”

Wooyoung held back a chuckle behind closed lips, “I wouldn’t worry about it.”

San shot him a wink and looked up at the rest of the guests aboard the boat, “Salutations, you’re now boarding the  _ Sengal Sal _ and I’m your skipper: San. Say sayonara to the sad souls who still have yet to sail on a spectacular ship such as the special one you’re sitting on,” he introduced, alliteration already preparing the guests for the comical ride. He started up the boat and began to drift with a weak hand on the steering wheel, “Go on, wave ‘em off like you mean it, you’ll never see them again.”

The other passengers waved, doing as told and the small children started to laugh at his jokes. Wooyoung looked back to see a relieved smile spread over San’s face. 

“Okay, now, keep your hands, arms, feet, legs, and small children inside the boat at all times. I know it may be tempting to throw the little suckers overboard, but we can’t lose anybody like last time.”

A couple of middle aged mothers laughed in the back, earning a small chuckle from San himself, “Now, ladies, try not to get all wet back there,” he paused letting the joke settle on them, “the rain might start coming in big time.”

A holler and clap sounded from the back, ripples of laughter went through the boat and Wooyoung smiled. Hongjoong continued to scribble down notes on the clipboard, seemingly unphased. His expression fell, and he nudged the shorter with his elbow, “Loosen up, enjoy the ride” he whispered.

Hongjoong glared from the corner of his eye, “Don’t interrupt me, I’ll ‘ _ loosen up’ _ when I stop working and I don’t see that being any time soon. Have all the fun you want, but I’m technically doing my job right now so keep me out of it.”

Wooyoung sighed dejectedly, refocusing his gaze onto San who was in the midst of making a joke about a python growing up to thirty feet, “I don’t see any feet on him, though, he must be a baby. Now you’ll see the first few elephants right around this corner, not the first one’s ever, but, hey, we can dream big here. You know, the elephant has the best memory out of every animal in existence. I wish I had that,” he steered in silence for a few moments, “You know, the elephant has the best memory out of every animal in existence. I wish I had that,” he repeated himself.

The little kids giggled at his ‘forgetfulness’, pointing as the final animatronic sprayed water from its trunk. Wooyoung’s smile grew wider.

“We’re coming up on some sandstone, I think these formations rock and a lot of people really take them for granite- Oh, cool, animals,” he cut himself off, “Look at those majestic beasts, lions are known for their manes and sharp teeth, but look at those guys cuddling up to that zebra… that looks just a tad,” he exaggerated a gulp into the speaker, “dead- tired! I meant dead tired, yeah, that’s definitely how they sleep, right kids?”

Wooyoung let himself indulge in the cheesy humor, trying to avoid laughing too hard out of fear of being on the obnoxious side but, the energy of the boat was infectious.

“Okay guys, we are now heading into the tunnels of the ancient temples, can everyone give me an ‘ooo’?” A chorus of ‘ooo’s sounded from the boat, save for Hongjoong who just made another tick mark on a box, “Hopefully we won’t need to have any ‘ahh’s,” San let out a yelp, or, rather, a terrified ‘ahh’, “Nevermind,” he spoke shakily with faux fear, “there’s snakes.”

He couldn’t help it, his squeaky laugh escaped him in the series of tittering from the rest of the guests. San stared at him, a half smirk on his face and eyes taking on the shape of crescents. Wooyoung’s heart stopped in his chest as he took in the other’s appearance as if for the first time. His black hair was messy beneath his hat, wet with sweat and stray droplets from the rain that had it curling at the ends. The line that led from cheekbone to his jaw was sharp, but it looked soft, coated in a thin sheen of moisture. Though, no softness compared to that of his lips that possessed the slightest upward turn to them. A glimpse of honey-tanned skin peaked out of the open collar of his shirt, and his breath caught in his throat. 

Wooyoung’s hands froze in his lap, trembling, while the familiar feeling of butterflies filled his chest and beat against his rib cage as though they were trying to escape. San broke their gaze and shifted his attention back to the passengers as he prepared his parting lines. His hearing had become muffled, San’s voice not even passing through him and instead floating around him like a fog.

“Thank you all for being such a lovely bunch, please get out,” San teased, coming to a complete stop, “Kidding, I’m kidding, but seriously, get out. Make sure to collect your little ones, and little ones make sure to collect your big ones, yeah? Buh-Bye, thank you, watch your step, have a good one.”

Hongjoong nudged Wooyoung from his spot, “Let’s go,” he said, “You too, San, it’s your break anyway.”

San let out some sort of excited noise, putting the small microphone device down and following after them. They all stepped off, another employee taking over for him, and walked until they were under the roof of the exit area.

“So, how did I do, Captain?” San asked, letting his hat hang around his neck by the string that ran from one side to the other and running a hand through his hair in a way that made it perfectly messy.

Wooyoung felt his ears burn.

“You did great, actually,” Hongjoong said, rolling his neck and shoulders out, “The only complaint I had was the joke about the ladies getting wet, but since you kept it PG I can’t technically say anything negative. I did see some people out here that were less than preferable, but the overall experience was good and that’s shown in the lack of complaints we get from this place.”

“That sounds like success to me,” he grinned, “Do you still have to ride through?”

“At least five more times, I’m going to get on through the front. There’s no point waiting in line again.”

“Then you better get going, I’m pretty sure Jinyoung’s boat is there right now and he’s always a good one.”

Hongjoong heaved a deep breath, “Alright, you coming Wooyoung?”

“No, I don’t think so, I might call Yeosang before I need to go back to the tunnels.”

“Okay, I’ll see you,” he began to walk away, “you’ve got ten minutes, San,” he called back to him.

“So,” San spoke much gentler than he had in front of the boat full of tourists, “You saw what I do, what has your day been like? Anything exciting in the parade?”

“No, no not really,” his voice was breathless, “Although, my dance partner almost tripped going down mainstreet. We had a good time teasing her afterwards.”

“Still sounds more entertaining than what I have going on,” he said, looking back in the direction of the boats, “the script can be exhausting when you recite it all day, I’m just grateful I had a good crowd this time around. This is much better than you seeing me awkwardly make jokes to a group that refuses to crack a smile.”

“I would’ve laughed, even if it was silent,” Wooyoung replied, almost too quickly.

“Really? I could tell you were holding back for a while, I did break you, though, towards the end when I managed to get that genuine one out of you.”

His mouth fell open, he managed to recover fast enough, “Well, maybe I should stop by more often, get a  _ genuine _ laugh in once in a while. It’s been a real blast, but,” he pulled out his phone to look at the time, “I should call my roommate, I’ll see you around-”

“Wait,” San reached out and took him by the arm, “Could we hang out sometime? That sounds blunt, sorry, I meant as friends. I’m not really into anything else right now if you know what I mean. You just seem really cool and if you can manage to be friends with Hongjoong, then I think you’re worth getting to know.”

“Oh… sure, yeah,” Wooyoung’s heartbeat was in his ears, “Do you want my number?”

“That’d be great,” he pulled out his own phone, going through it and passing it over.

He put his number in as fast as he could, adding a smiley face emoticon next to his name and giving him back his phone, “Text me whenever, I usually answer fast. Goodbye, San, it was fun,” he waved as he walked off, smiling.

“Bye,” San said it so quietly Wooyoung had almost missed it.

The second he was out of ear shot, he nearly fumbled his phone trying to go through his contacts. He hit ‘call’ the second he found Yeosang’s name, “Yeosang?”

“Hey, I have, like, five minutes. What’s up?,” the familiar, deep voice of his friend settled his heartbeat enough for him to breathe evenly.

“You’re not going to believe this.”

“What?”

Wooyoung squeezed his eyes shut, “I met a guy.”


	8. Strangers Like Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jongho had never met a stranger that was somehow familiar to him. Working with technology can be hard when the company you crave is not that of cold, impersonal switches and buttons, but rather a person with the serene liveliness of a flower.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi lovely people !! I feel horrible for how late this chapter is :( I actually had a lot of trouble writing it (it ended up being very dialogue heavy despite my best efforts) so please let me know your thoughts !! Thank you all for sticking around, you have no idea how much your attention to these boys makes my day <3
> 
> p.s. I'm thinking I start showing a bit more of my personality and thoughts on chapters from now on since I'm now permanently *invested*. (the flowers mentioned within the chapter have specific meanings, so, if you're into symbolism go ahead and check that out)

**Choi Jongho**

**Position: Tech Maintenance, Magic Kingdom Park**

Jongho shifted his feet from where he was crouched down, moving back and away from the console to get a better look at it. He stood with a huff, believing his work to be satisfactory, and pressed the button in the top right corner. He immediately heard a loud screeching noise from deep within the ride followed by the first few notes of the Whinnie-the-Pooh theme music.

A sigh of relief came from behind him, “Oh my God, thank you so much,” Jongho turned to see Namjoon press a hand to his chest, “You must be sick of us over here, that’s the fourth time this week that we’ve needed you to come to FantasyLand.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he scratched the back of his neck, “I know these old ones tend to have start up troubles every few weeks.”

“More like days,” the taller man led him to the exit, “Seriously, we really appreciate you coming all the way from AdventureLand. Jin told me some animatronics have been shutting down at the Jungle Cruise.”

“Thankfully nothing happened yesterday during quality checks,” Jongho readjusted the strap of his toolbag over his shoulder.

“Choi Jongho, this is Jennie, do you copy?” His walkie-talkie’s static warped her voice.

He took the device from his belt, raising to his ear and pressing the button, “I copy, where’s my next location?”

“Liberty Square, Haunted Mansion. The pop-up timer is off and Jisoo transferred to guest services so they no longer have anyone who knows how to reset it. It’s not technically classified as an emergency, but your break is in thirty and you’re the only available tech guy at the moment.”

“I’ll be right there, over and out,” he slipped the walkie-talkie back into its place, looking up to Namjoon, “If there are any more issues, give Jennie a call and I’ll come back later today or she’ll send someone else.”

“Great, thank you again, keep up the good work,” he shook the others hand, a smile with deep dimples making an appearance.

Jongho nodded in affirmation and began to make his way to Liberty Square. He knew the park like the back of his hand. Every detail of every ride was mapped out in his mind to the point where he could close his eyes and visualize all of Magic Kingdom. Having to repair most of the rides between Main Street and FantasyLand allowed him to get acquainted with several of the supervisors, including Namjoon,  Rosé, Chris, and Hongjoong, even Jaebeom over in TomorrowLand. He had especially taken a liking to his next destination. Liberty Square was by far the most peaceful area of the park, the only real ride being the Haunted Mansion alongside the Hall of Presidents that his more advanced coworkers got sent to. All of the places to eat always smelled  _ so _ nice and were never as busy as the major restaurants within the surrounding sub-parks. The last time he was sent there, a worker served as an escort for him. Jongho briefly wondered if Yeosang would be there again, or if he would keep him there like last time. 

More often than not, Jongho would arrive and leave promptly with no exceptions. He hated wasting time that could be spent working, which often caused him to skip his breaks. It was worth it, though, to work behind the scenes to make sure everyone who came to the parks had a “magical” experience. He couldn’t say he minded the extra few minutes he spent with the Haunted Mansion Employee, they actually let his mind take a breather from being crowded with tasks and information. Jongho never talked about his social life, he didn’t exactly have one to talk about, seeing as his didn’t extend beyond Seonghwa and Yunho. Sure, he talked to Jennie a lot in retrospect, but he’d never call her a  _ friend _ , at least not one that he would see outside of work. 

He  _ did _ sometimes get drinks with the other maintenance guys, but all of them were at least twenty years older than him and the only younger one that Jongho had met, Changbin, usually went home with some of the workers over at Splash Mountain in FrontierLand. They were close enough, but Jongho really only ever saw him at meetings and the occasional break or job. When he’d go home, he and Seonghwa would sometimes go out to a late dinner Downtown just to get out of the apartment. Yunho would join them on occasion, if the two of them managed to get a night off at the same time. He should ask Seonghwa if they could do that sometime soon.

Upon entering Liberty Square, he spotted the long line leading up to his destination. Two greeters, one of which Jongho recognized from the last time he was here, stood outside. He walked up to them, hand clutching his strap harder as his anxiety climbed, “I’m here for tech maintenance.”

The boy, who’s name tag told him was named ‘Han’ offered a smile far too welcoming for the average Haunted Mansion employee, “Oh, right this way,” he extended his arm to guide him over towards the side near the exit where Jongho spotted another employee in an identical butler uniform walking out to them.

He was the same boy who escorted him last time, Yeosang, but now he walked with an aura of silent, somewhat suppressed, authority, “Jongho, thank you for coming so quickly,” the other boy strolled up to them.

Jongho nodded, “It’s no problem,” he let the corners of his lips turn the smallest amount upwards, “Same place as last time?”

Yeosang hummed in confirmation, “I’ll have to walk you there, you know how important image is around here,” he began to walk towards the side entrance they had used the last time they were together. Jongho took in the decor, the overcast skies making it look all the creepier. There wasn’t supposed to be any rain until later that day, yet the sun was completely shielded by grey clouds and the air was made cooler because of it. 

“It’s nicer out than last time,” he said aloud, sparing a look at the other.

Yeosang didn’t turn around, but Jongho saw him nod, “Much nicer, I can finally tolerate this uniform and, now that I have later hours starting today, I don’t have to stay out in the sun for my whole shift.”

“You got the head employee position, then?”

“Yeah, Jisoo transferred yesterday and we had a small cast party Downtown. I moved up to her spot, so now I get some actual importance around here. You’re going to be called down a lot more since she’s gone, I have no idea how to work any of the stuff in the tech room.”

“Good, I actually like coming to this part of the park,” Jongho could’ve sworn he saw Yeosang’s head perk up at that, but, when he couldn’t see his face, it was hard to tell how the other truly reacted, “This is way more peaceful than FantasyLand or FrontierLand.”

“Oh really?” Yeosang slowed his steps to walk in time with him, “What do you mean by that?”

“In FantasyLand, there are people everywhere and a lot of the older rides are back in that area, they are  _ by far  _ the hardest to work on. Namjoon also tends to break things when he’s running through doing function check-ups and making sure nothing has gone wrong, it’s honestly counterproductive.”

“Namjoon?” He questioned.

“Supervisor of FantasyLand.”

“Ah, so he does what Hongjoong does.”

Jongho nodded, “Chris does the same over at FrontierLand, it’s chaos over there. I don’t think they take things as seriously as Hongjoong, maybe not even at all. Granted, their maintenance needs are low since Splash Mountain and Thunder Mountain are the only real mechanical rides. They rarely break down and, since they’re side by side, I don’t need to cover too much ground.”

Yeosang held the door open for him, letting Jongho lead them through the hallway they had used the previous time he was here. He could hear the sounds of the tourists getting onto the ride, excited chatter and heavy footsteps against the carpeted floor.

The older moved in front of him to grab the key that was on the wall next to the door, hanging from a lanyard on a hook. He flipped through them until he found the correct one and slipped it into the keyhole, turning it. Upon entering the familiar room, he took notice of the two chairs that were stacked on top of each other in the far corner. He watched as Yeosang lifted the top one and set it on the ground and slid it towards Jongho, “You can sit down if you’d like. This is just a timer issue, so you shouldn’t need to move from the main console, right?”

Jongho stared at him for a moment, taking in the other’s smile that was never bright but always genuine, “Thank you,” he hesitated, “so, how was that cast party for Jisoo?”

“Loud,” Yeosang sighed, as though the thought of the event was worse than actually working, “You’d be surprised how obnoxious some of my coworkers are. Mina didn’t come, so Han decided to bring a friend of his and they were like animals. You know how Rainforest Café sounds?”

Jongho chuckled, “Yeah?”

“That was it, except we were at this Irish Pub in the ‘mature’ side of Downtown which didn’t help because they blast the music there.”

“Raglan Road? I go there with my roommate sometimes, the entertainment is great,” Jongho flipped a few switches off that lined the bottom of the console’s surface, knowing they would shut down the pop-ups then restart the timer.

“Their drinks are great, too,” Yeosang kicked at the ground, emitting a  _ scuff  _ sound, “Jisoo got really drunk and I had to help her to the parking garage so Rosé could come pick her up.”

Jongho could see the image play out in his mind, “You didn’t? Get drunk, I mean.”

“I had two or three, but it wasn’t enough to get me shitfaced like Han. He and his friend stayed for an hour after everyone left and he called me at two in the morning to tell me how excited he was to be working under me.”

“You didn’t take anyone, then?” Jongho squeezed his eyes shut, cringing at himself. That must have come off as too intrusive.

“I took my roommate, Wooyoung, since he’s into that kind of stuff and will take any opportunity to go out,” he answered easily, “He was the one of us that could barely walk in a straight line after, he wouldn’t shut up about this guy he met yesterday and it was  _ exhausting _ .” 

“Not Hongjoong?”

Yeosang groaned, “He’s been going through the ringer lately, have you been over there today?”

Jongho thought for a moment, “I can’t say I have, why? Did he have a meltdown because of Seonghwa?” He knew that the two weren’t presently speaking, Seonghwa came home everyday with nothing to complain about which somehow made him complain more.

“Hongjoong hasn’t even breathed a word about him, or anything really. It’s like watching a bomb drop in slow motion because you can tell that he’s going to explode any second but you can’t do anything about it. The only time he talks is when I have to press him about something, I think he’s shutting down…,” Yeosang trailed off with a nervous chuckle, as if he wasn’t sure if that last part was a joke or not, “I’m sorry for ranting so much. You’re just a really good listener, you make it easy.”

Jongho felt heat rush to his cheeks, grateful that he was facing away from him, “I don’t mind, I actually like having a conversation that goes beyond pleasantries.”

“That’s good, I haven’t talked this much since I first met Mina. I never get to talk about my personal life unless I’m on a break all because we need to constantly keep up with character here.”

Jongho fiddled with a small button at the end, eyes narrowing upon noticing that it doesn’t seem to have a function, “Did you ever try for another job at a different ride? I know they don’t require people to follow a story at a lot of places in TomorrowLand and FrontierLand. Then again, they may have to and they just neglect the rules.”

“When I was applying for transfer, the only places I was technically ‘qualified’ to work at were the Mansion and It’s a Small World,” Yeosang even sounded disgusted with the idea. 

“I definitely couldn’t imagine you there.”

“Neither could I, so I took the greeter job here,” he took a deep breath, thinking over his words, “I like it enough, a lot of girls seem to like the uniform.”

Jongho failed to think before he spoke, “Do you like the girls?” He froze, “You don’t have to answer that, I’m sorry,” he didn’t turn around, embarrassment coursing through him. He knew how uncomfortable it was to be asked that, never liking to discuss his personal  _ preferences  _ with people he had barely met. In highschool, he never told anyone, then only told a handful of people in college, and he has found that he had only told Seonghwa and Yunho because it simply never came up elsewhere. He prayed silently in his head that he hadn’t ruined something.

“No,” Yeosang spoke quietly, but unreservedly, “I don’t, but there hasn’t been a boy before, either.”

The younger swallowed hard, “Not before…?”

“I don’t meet very many people, that’s my best friend’s job. It’s hardly something I’m good at,” his voice sounded far away, reminiscent of a memory he shared with someone special.

Jongho continued to stare down at the surface of the consol, heart pounding against his ribs, “I’m sure you’re better than you give yourself credit for. You can actually carry a conversation.”

“Great, I’ve got that going for me, then,” he could hear the sound of Yeosang shifting in his own chair on the other side of the small room, “What about you? I can’t imagine you wouldn’t have found someone by now, you meet so many people a day at all of the attractions.”

He knew this was an opportunity, Yeosang had specifically said ‘ _ someone’ _ , leaving Jongho to tell who he was attracted to himself, “No, I… I haven’t been able to meet any boys either. None have really stood out to me, you know?” He turned around in his chair, spreading his legs to accommodate the back of the seat. 

Yeosang’s eyes were deeper than anyone’s Jongho had ever seen. His brown hair was parted to the side, strands falling from their place as the hours wore on him. Dark eyes met his own, staring and unmoving, possessing a critical elegance to them that caused Jongho’s mouth to dry. His skin was smooth, sharpened curves and rounded edges that created a, for lack of a better word, beautiful balance. The older flicked his eyes up and down the younger, warranting an electric sensation to reverberate across his skin. 

They may cut into his break, but Jongho wasn’t about to leave now. 

“I think… I think I do know,” his voice was heavy, a hint of a feeling, one Jongho couldn’t identify, being lost in the sound, “You are one of few that I’ve found it this effortless to talk to in a while, you have no idea.”

Jongho blinked a few times, trying to keep his mind steady, “What if I do?”

“What if you do what?” Every word was spoken delicately, with intent.

“What if I do have an idea?” He leaned forward, resting his arms against the back of the chair, “You make it effortless for me, too.”

Yeosang’s stone-like face broke, the ends of his softly angled lips twitched upwards. He looked down to the ground, eyes averting Jongho’s gaze as if they would show too much of what he was thinking. The tips of his ears slowly tinted with a rose colored blush, a detail he found infinitely endearing. A small laugh escaped the older, an airy sound that came from his chest. Jongho bit his lip to hold back his own smile that attempted to show itself. 

He felt his brain grow foggy, with a sharp shake of his head, he stood, “Yeosang… I should leave, you have work to do.”

The other’s head snapped up to him, eyes searching his face before an expression of crestfallen understanding settled over his features, “You’re right,” his voice was low.

Jongho felt a pull in his heart, “I’ll see you again soon?” He asked, knowing there was no way for Yeosang to guarantee they would meet again in the near future.

“You will,” he replied, words fast to leave his lips, “I know you will.”

“Good,” Jongho held out his hand, an offering.

Yeosang took it, giving it a firm squeeze. His hands were thin, delicate, “You seeing yourself out again?”

He nodded, letting his arm drop back to his side to pull his bag up and off of the ground, “Bye, for now,” with one last smile, he slipped out the door and shut it gently behind him so as to not make a single noise.

A patch of sky had cleared, allowing for the striking rays of sunlight to cast down in an array of inconsistent warmth. He inhaled deeply, the smell of incoming rain infiltrating the air. A longing to return to the mansion planted like a seed deep within him. Burying itself beneath the echoing memory of Yeosang’s light laughter and shy smile. His words floating in his mind, the intensity of his eyes continuing to burn right through him. Every step away from the Haunted Mansion felt like a step towards something, something that, ironically, felt as though it remained in the opposite direction.

A new feeling bloomed inside of Jongho, filling his lungs with petals, choking him with thorns and vines alike from the inside out. Ambrosia and Baby’s Breath sprouted between his ribs, prodding his sides. Apple Blossoms crowded his skull, filling it completely with a soft pressure. Lilacs grew, wrapping around his heart and entangling themselves with his veins. The sensation was simultaneously crushing and suffocating him, and, yet, Jongho had never felt more alive. 


	9. Like Fire, Hellfire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hongjoong couldn't help the red, hot anger that took root deep inside of him, burning brighter with every passing minute of every day. Not even the excessive rain nor seconds of careful breathing were enough to cool him down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys :) This is by far one of my personal favorite chapters, I have actually wanted to write this from the beginning and I can't wait for you guys to get into it. I won't waste your time and, as always, stay safe and feel free to leave feedback !! (And thank you so much for 100 kudos you all mean the absolute world to me <3)
> 
> p.s. have you guys noticed that each of the chapters are titled specifically for the chapter? most of them are songs from Disney films and the lyrics play a big role in the title selection. Especially for this one, trust me and look up the lyrics for the song Hellfire from the Hunchback of Notre Dame you won't regret it ;)

**Kim Hongjoong**

**Position: Character Attendant and Convention Guide Supervision, Magic Kingdom Park**

Hongjoong stood tiredly, coffee cup in hand and clipboard at his side, in front of the Aladdin ride. The first half of the day had gone horribly. He slept through his alarm twice after staying up until five in the morning to finish up some extra paperwork from management, he couldn’t find the right tie or a clean button-down, Wooyoung forgot to start the coffee pot, the car wouldn’t start and Yeosang complained about being late _as if Hongjoong didn’t already know that_. As though things couldn’t get any worse before getting to work, there hadn’t been a moment of rest since he stepped into Adventureland.

Fits of storms came in short bursts, his white shirt sticking to his shoulders and back from the combination of rain water and sweat. Two of the custodians called in, leaving only three left and an occasional helping hand from Felix, who Chris said wouldn’t mind cleaning up around Tortuga Tavern, that Hongjoong had to reorganize around. He had to go down into the tunnels to grab a nametag for himself, having forgotten his at home, as well as extra rope to block off the bathrooms that were out of order. He missed his first break because he had to help three kids find their parents, which ended with him having to walk them all the way over to Liberty Square wasting even more time than he could spare. The Pirates of the Carribean Ride had audio play troubles, that Hongjoong had to fix himself, there was no time to call maintenance.

Now, he stood staring at the Aladdin Ride that was refusing to start up and Hongjoong was prepared to give up. He squeezed the clipboard hard enough to hurt his fingers, he took another sip of coffee in the hopes to satiate the frustration brewing inside of him.

“Tell me again, what is _exactly_ wrong with it? Be as specific as you can,” Hongjoong took a heavy breath, chest tight.

Eric scratched at the back of his neck, “I don’t know, it just isn’t turning on. One second I was stopping the ride and letting everyone off, then the next I was loading the people on and when I went to press the button the thing failed to even lift them off of the ground. I didn’t even get to pull the lever before I lowered them back down and ushered them off.”

He had to bite his tongue, counting down from ten to calm himself down, “Okay, give me one second, would you mind holding this?” Hongjoong passed his coffee over to Eric who held it between both of his hands.

With a quick pull, he yanked his walkie-talkie from it’s place, lifted it to his ear, and pressed the button to speak, “Jennie? It’s Kim Hongjoong from AdventureLand, do you copy?”

“I copy, what’s the issue this time?” She replied, a yawn coming from her end of the connection.

“The Aladdin ride isn’t functioning properly… or at all, it can’t lift passengers or spin. Our employees can’t specify what exactly happened that made it breakdown, so we’ll need someone to come and check it out.”

The sound of a mouse clicking rang through the static, “Hongjoong… Unfortunately none of them are available right this second. They are having a lot of problems in TomorrowLand and Jaebeom has half of my guys at Space Mountain alone.”

Hongjoong considered screaming, instead he counted down from ten, “When’s the earliest you can get someone here?”

More clicking, “Jongho is in FantasyLand now, he should be done his job within half an hour at the most, can you block it off? Maybe set up some of the greeters to supervise the ride until he gets there.”

“I will, thank you, Jen,” he looked up at the sky to see darker clouds coming their way.

“Hang in there, over and out,” the line went dead and Hongjoong returned the device to it’s pocket at his belt. He turned to Eric who was staring at him, “What?” His voice escaped him with a bite.

“N-Nothing, I was… nevermind,” he averted his eyes, “I guess she didn’t have any good news?” 

Hongjoong shook his head, “It could take up to thirty minutes before maintenance gets here, I’ll have to run and get more rope from the tunnels,” he felt another wave of pain crash behind his eyes and down his neck, it felt like glass was shattering in his ears, “Stand out here and make sure to answer any questions they have by saying the ‘magic has yet to be cast over the carpets’, that’s the company regulated response.”

“Okay,” Eric’s eyes fell to the cup of coffee in his hand, “Here, you look like you need this,” the second he held his hand out to give it back, the cup slipped through his fingers. Hongjoong tried to reach forward and grab it, but his reaction was too slow. The coffee burst from the cup and spilled into a puddle onto the ground, some of its contents splashing upward onto Hongjoong’s white shirt. Eric looked horror-stricken, face turning as white as a sheet, “Shit, fuck, Hongjoong… I-I’m so sorry I didn’t-”

“Ten… nine… eight… seven…,” he sucked in a lungful of air, finishing the exercise in his head, “Eric, please answer any and all questions. No one is allowed on the ride; the technician’s name is Jongho, he is the only one allowed in, okay?”

“Yeah, okay.”

“I’ll send one of the custodians to clean this up and I’ll be back with ropes in ten,” Hongjoong tried to speak as steadily as he could, his words wavering between emotions.

He didn’t say anything more before rising slowly and walking off, the soiled shirt he wore being stained by brown spots soaking into the fabric. There was the sound of distant thunder amongst the white noise of tourists, no raindrops fell from the sky quite yet. Every step he took was heavy as if he had a ball and chain attached to each ankle, he pushed through and quickened his pace trying to find at least _one_ of the custodians. His brain was somehow completely blank _and_ running rampant with thoughts of what else could go wrong. Rationally, he could take the time to get a new shirt. The chance that there was one that was clean and suitable for him was low. Then again, Wooyoung is only a little taller than him and a lot of his friends are around the same height, so there was a possibility that someone may have one lying around. 

Hongjoong pushed the damp strands of dark hair away from his face, the ends continued to brush against his forehead and fell into his eyes. His shirt was slowly making him smell like coffee, which would normally not be so bothersome if his senses weren’t in overdrive. After a scan of the area around him, he had no luck finding any of the custodians and decided to make a note to reconfigure locations before his dinner break at seven. His skin was stinging beneath his shirt, irritated by moisture and the fabric rubbing at it. He diverted his path to the stairs where the main walkway through AdventureLand met the entrance to the Jungle Cruise. With a huffed curse, he placed his clipboard on the ground and rolled the sleeves of his shirt up his forearms. Hongjoong felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end, feeling that something was about to go wrong.

“Hey, Hongjoong!” San’s voice called out to him.

He looked up to see the boy waving him over to the ride’s exit, dimples on full display, he held his breath for a few seconds before exhaling and walking up to him. As he got closer, he noticed a woman, likely in her thirties, standing behind him with worry plaguing her features, “Hi, can I help you?” A fake smile formed on his face, an apparent success as the woman melted with relief.

“You’re the supervisor, yes?” She asked.

“That’s me,” Hongjoong made an effort to sound comforting, “Is there anything I can do for you?”

“Yes,” she looked around the small area, “I can’t seem to find my son’s stroller, we parked it over there,” she pointed to the area just off of the dock that was covered by the shade of the waiting area.

“Was this a company supplied stroller or does it belong to you?” He asked, maintaining a warm expression.

“It was the company’s, but my son left some belongings in there and we don’t know who took it or when,” a small boy peeked out from behind the woman’s sundress, fists clutching at the skirt.

Hongjoong felt his smile drop ever so slightly, regaining it fast enough for them not to notice, “Unfortunately, we don’t have a stroller facility in AdventureLand. However, some friends of mine over in FrontierLand do and I have a feeling they may have mistaken it for being empty,” he began to pull the walkie-talkie from his pocket once again, “If you would excuse me for a moment to give them a call?”

The woman nodded her head enthusiastically, “Yes, please, go right ahead.”

“Thank you,” Hongjoong stepped away so he was out of earshot, letting his expression fall and eyebrows furrow. His fingers found the buttons, connecting him through to the correct channel, “Chris Bang, this is Kim Hongjoong, do you copy?”

“Hello, hello,” Chris sounded much too happy for him at the moment, “How are you doing over there? Did Felix screw something up, yet?” His tone was teasing, Hongjoong knew, but he didn’t have time for that. 

“Actually, I think so,” he started, “Did he, by any chance, return a stroller from Jungle Cruise recently?”

Sounds of conversation slipped from Chris’s end of the line, “He did, about ten minutes ago, why?”

“I have a guest here saying she left the stroller in a non-designated waiting area and when she got off the ride she found it missing. Did you find any personal belongings inside? Maybe toys or any other things relating to a child?” He squeezed his eyes shut, spots dancing behind his eyelids.

More hushed speaking, “Yeah, we have it here at the trading post, in the back. Would you like me to send it over?”

“I’ll send her to you, there’s no use potentially risking the transfer of her property if something goes wrong. Is Felix still there?”

Chris presumably shut a door as a muffled bang echoed through the speaker, “No, he went back towards Tortuga’s. Seonghwa is here, though, he said he wanted to use some of the extra time to sweep the water off of the walkways after such a nasty storm earlier. He might be stuck here all day,” he laughed, “I wouldn’t be surprised if the rain coming now lasted the rest of our shift.”

Anger boiled in the pit of Hongjoong’s stomach, “The minute I let you go, you’re going to have somebody send Seonghwa back over here. I’m sick of his shit, I swear to God, I can’t be doing this today,” he was seething, “The guest will be on her way, stay there and offer her some fast passes to Splash Mountain or something. _Do not_ let Seonghwa stay there, under any circumstances. Do not take no for an answer from him. We are understaffed on the cleaning crew as it is and I actually needed to find one ten minutes ago.”

“Yeah, okay,” Chris came off genuinely apologetic, “Hongjoong, take a breather, yeah?”

Hongjoong bit back a growl, counting down from ten, “I don’t have the time, but thanks for the concern. Over and out.”

“Hongj-” Chris was cut off by Hongjoong’s finger releasing the button.

He re-pocketed the walkie-talkie, running both hands through his hair and scratching at his scalp. Taking a deep breath, he returned to the woman to see her laughing at San as he held her child in his arms. San was patting the boys back and swaying him back and forth, “Good news?” He asked, eyes spotting Hongjoong as he approached.

His lips curved into another commercial smile, “Great news, the stroller is exactly where I thought it would be. Your belongings are being held at the Frontier Trading Post just outside of the Splash Mountain entrance. You’ll just have to walk in, ask for Chris Bang and he’ll be waiting to return your property and offer some compensation for your patience and understanding.”

The woman’s eyes reflected gratitude, “Thank you so much for all of your help, really,” she turned to San and her son who was still giggling in the former’s arms, “and thank you, too, we really enjoyed the ride and I’m sure we’ll see you again. Come on, let’s go sweetie,” she reached her arms out to take the boy back.

“Please enjoy the rest of your day, ma’am,” Hongjoong nodded to her.

“You too,” she bumped her son to get his attention, “Can you say ‘bye’?”

The little boy waved and San laughed, waving back, “Thank you for visiting!”

The guests walked off in the direction of FrontierLand, leaving San and Hongjoong to themselves.

“It’s a good thing I caught you, I wouldn’t have even thought that Felix may have taken it back to his section. We should really block off that spot, so many people park their strollers there. Hey, what happened to your shirt?”

Hongjoong’s eyes blew wide, looking down at the reminder of the spilled coffee, “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” he whispered to himself, the burning sensation behind his eyes overwhelming him for a moment, “I need to get ropes and send a custodian to Aladdin,” his breathing caught in his throat, “and Seonghwa is still over in FrontierLand because he can’t stay still for the life of him. I still have to change out of this shirt,” Hongjoong needed to regain control, he reigned himself back in, “Five… four… three… two,” he exhaled, “one.”

San was staring at him, eyes flickering over his face with so much concern he almost cracked under his gaze, “Hongjoong, are you okay? I can go get the ropes, if you want. I’m on my break right now so I have some time. You said it was Aladdin that needed them, right?”

“I… no, no, no,” he ran a hand through his hair and tugged at the strands, “I can do it, I have to do it to make sure it gets done properly because if you don’t grab enough… or what if Jongho is already there and fixing it and by the time you get there he doesn’t need them anymore? And they still need a custodian- I need to have a talk with Seonghwa- maybe I could send Felix, but that might take too long. I think Youngjae is over near Swiss Family Robinson, but that’s on the other end of AdventureLand,” he heaved in a breath, “Ten… nine… eight…”

“Woah, woah, woah,” San placed his hands on the other’s shoulders, “Hey, I’ll use the little bit of extra rope we’ve got in the closet here. I’ll drop it off at Aladdin and grab Youngjae while I’m over there, it shouldn’t take too long and Eric is there to stand in front of the ride’s entrance in case there isn’t enough rope. Go find Seonghwa and straighten him out, then get changed, and come back to Aladdin when you’re done, okay?” San continues to rub his hands over Hongjoong’s shoulders, moving to wrap an arm around them and walk the older up the stairs, “and grab something to drink, too, you look like you’re going to pass out.”

“Okay… Okay,” Hongjoong pulled away from the other, “Please, hurry, I wasted enough time on those guests already.”

“I will,” San began to drift backwards, “I’ll see you soon.”

Hongjoong didn’t hesitate before starting off in the opposite direction, intent on finding Seonghwa. He stormed through the crowds of people, eyes set with the furious bubble growing inside of him. The sky began to drizzle with droplets coming down slowly. Tourists began to clear away, walking onto rides or restaurants or anywhere to find shelter to avoid the inevitable onslaught of rain. His footsteps fell hard against the ground, pace quickening as the thunder grew closer and the light shower turned into a steady pour.

The second he got close to Pirates of the Carribean he spotted Seonghwa approaching the ‘Cast Members Only’ door. His blood ran hot, seeing the other pushing his gloves into his back pocket and shaking his head to rid his hair of excess rain water. Seonghwa’s uniform was getting soaked with every passing second and Hongjoong knew he looked no better. The older must’ve heard him getting close because his head shot up and he scowled at him.

“Oh so now you want to yell at me? Got tired of ignoring me these past few days?” He was annoyed, frustrated, and maybe Hongjoong might say hurt if his defensive posture wasn’t an obvious effort to make himself appear much bigger than him. 

“You’re going to come with me, right now,” he said through gritted teeth, placing a hand harshly against Seonghwa’s back and pushing him in the direction of the bathrooms. A hand landed on the door with the ‘Out of Order’ sign hung on it and he shoved it open, yanking him into the room by his arm.

“What the hell? What did I do now?” Seonghwa rubbed at his arm where he may have squeezed a little too hard, his mind clouded with anger.

“What did you do? _What did you do?_ ” Hongjoong felt his skin light on fire, slamming the door shut behind, “You’re joking, right? You have to be, there’s no way that you have no idea why what you did was wrong.”

“Well, maybe if you told me what you’re so upset about I could get an idea.”

“You left your assigned area. You know we’re understaffed because half of the cleaning staff called in today. I have been racing around since I got here and I didn’t need you pulling this on a day when you _knew_ there would be absolutely no reason to. What was your logic behind going to FrontierLand? We were in such deep shit already because we needed Felix to help us out around Tortuga’s. If _we_ needed to borrow somebody, what was your reasoning behind leaving?” He spoke quickly, words acting as knives flying from between his lips. 

“I had some time, everyone had cleared because of the storm and I figured I’d help them out as a thank you for Felix’s extra ground he had to cover,” Seonghwa crossed his arms, voice deep, unwilling and stubborn.

“On the one day we couldn’t spare extra bodies? Why couldn’t you have waited until tomorrow? I had a mess over at Aladdin and I should have been able to find you immediately and send you there.”

“A mess? What…?” His eyes fell to Hongjoong’s stained shirt, “Oh…,” the other’s lips twitched in amusement, “Why didn’t you have Youngjae do it? He’s closer to Aladdin anyway, where was your logic, _Captain_?”

Hongjoong clenched his fists, “ _Stop calling me that_ ,” he growled, the sound resonating in the back of his throat, “I have more things to do than finding a custodian to clean spilled coffee. I’ve had to do more today than you have this week.”

“Get over yourself, you have no idea what I do all day. I hate to break it to you, but you can’t monitor my every move. Stop trying to control everything. It won’t work,” Seonghwa’s eyes were murderous, “You just can’t do it.”

“Stop talking down to me,” Hongjoong took a step closer, “I work above you, don’t speak to me like I’m a child.”

“I will when you stop acting like one.”

“ _I’m the child?_ ” His voice dripped with venom, “You’re the one who left for no reason, you never make any sense. I want you to do your job. It’s a simple task, Seonghwa, clean in your designated area and we won’t have any problems. What isn’t clicking? What about that doesn’t make sense to you?”

Seonghwa was now the one taking a step closer, “I already know that. What don’t you understand about me wanting to have more responsibility? I can handle it, stop trying to take care of all of this yourself.”

“Why do you want that? It’s my job to keep things running around here and it’s your job to clean where I assign you to. You’re causing more problems than you’re fixing.”

“I want to help you,” Seonghwa glared, “You’re trying to make this about you and your micromanaging is _exhausting_. Maybe I’m not the one causing problems around here, maybe it’s you.”

The accusation struck Hongjoong’s core, “That doesn’t excuse the fact that you went against your assignment. You deliberately left your section,” another step, “you avoided accountability,” another step, “and you continue to do it,” the taller was face to face with him and Hongjoong’s eyes traveled down him. His skin was coated with sweat, shirt and hair soaked by the rain that made stray droplets of water slide down his neck and drip onto his collarbones. He swallowed, “You never listen to anything I have to say,” his volume steadily rose, “You’re never doing what you’re needed to do. It’s like you don’t think at all!”

“And you think too much!” Seonghwa shouted back.

Their eyes surveyed one another, until they locked stares once more. Hongjoong felt himself be engulfed by the blazing fire that spread through the entirety of his being.


	10. He's a Tramp

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seonghwa never thought to alter his perspective, he never thought to look at Hongjoong as someone who needed more, or rather less, authority. His first taste of who Hongjoong was didn't end up being enough for him, the temptation overpowering reason.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my beautiful people !! I am so nervous about this chapter you have no idea, please please look at the newly added tags if you're sensitive to the potential contents of this chapter :) I have had this scene as an idea since I first started writing and I can't believe how fast this is going things are getting interesting haha. I hope you all enjoy and I love to read your comments so feel free to add them <3
> 
> p.s. I left quite a few hints towards Seonghwa's character that I didn't flat out state so I'm curious if you all can pick up on them ;) anyway, thank you all so much for continuing to read and stay safe !!

**Park Seonghwa**

**Position: Custodial Services, Magic Kingdom Park**

Seonghwa felt anchored to his spot, his eyes fixated on Hongjoong’s as they stared at one another. He felt a familiar warmth pool in his stomach, skin tingling with electricity that caused goosebumps to rise over his arms. Hongjoong looked worn out, his hair was matted down from the rain and his face was tinted red by anger and heat. The shirt he wore was untucked, wrinkled and stained from whatever had happened earlier that day. His eyes were red with exhaustion and irritation, dark circles deep beneath them. He was too young to look so angry. 

“It’s like you don’t think at all!” The other’s words rang loud in his head.

“And you think too much!” He fired back.

Hongjoong was breathing heavily enough for every exhale to reach Seonghwa as there was hardly a foot of distance left between them. Heart racing in his chest, he felt it slam against his ribs in a rhythm much too fast for his mind to keep up. He raked his eyes over the shorter once more. His skin was dripping with water, sun kissed and colored with a red blush. Rolled up sleeves exposed smooth forearms leading to clenched fists that juxtaposed their daintiness. The tie around the boy’s neck was coming undone and it hung low enough to expose a sliver of his collar. They stared in silence, breaths synced. Seonghwa wet his lips, watching as Hongjoong’s eyes slipped down to observe his movement. 

There was a moment where he heard nothing, the thundering storm that raged outside halted and his lungs stuttered. His heartbeat was the only thing he could hear, the unsteady pounding flooded his senses until there was nothing but his vision that tunneled on Hongjoong’s own lips mimicking his action. 

Then, with the force and speed of a starving animal, the other thrust himself at Seonghwa. He hadn’t a second to react before he was being thrown against the abandoned bathroom’s stall, Hongjoong’s body flush against his own. Their lips collided together messily, unprepared and rushed as the shorter pressed himself further into him. The younger took the fabric of his uniform in his fists and tugged while he forced Seonghwa’s back against the stall roughly. His hands shook at a violent rate, unsure of where to be placed as his mind went blank from confusion and shock. Hongjoong was practically melting against him, he could feel the heat radiating from the other’s body and mouth.

The shorter parted for a moment, breath labored against Seonghwa’s mouth, “... I can’t… I can’t _stop thinking_ ,” he clenched his jaw painfully tight, “I just want it to fucking _stop,_ ” his grip on his shirt strenghtened, Hongjoong looking up at him with pleading eyes and a harsh push as if that could help get his point across. 

The older closed his mouth and opened it, trying to gather himself enough to offer an actual response, “You want… Is this something you want? Right now?”

Hongjoong rutted his hips against Seonghwa’s own, chasing friction, “Mhm, I want… something… I want you,” his head fell against the other’s shoulder, “Make it go away… for a second,” he rubbed his cheek against the custodian’s uniform, shifting his legs impatiently, “...Please, _I need it_ .” 

Seonghwa held back a noise deep in his throat as he, with a tenuous touch, placed his hands on Hongjoong’s waist, sliding them down to his ass and pressing there to make the other squirm. He dug his fingers into the material of his pants , “Okay,” he spoke lowly, tilting his head down to whisper into Hongjoong’s ear, “you- you need to tell me if you need me to stop.”

The shorter shuddered, nodding, “ _Fine_ , just hurry-” he was cut off by Seonghwa flipping their position. He slammed Hongjoong against the bathroom stall by his hips, earning a gasp that was interrupted by the reuniting of their mouths.

Hongjoong’s lips were soft, opening without a second thought and giving Seonghwa permission to explore his mouth with his tongue. His hands were everywhere, pulling the shirt out from where it was tucked into his pants. Hongjoong threaded his fingers through Seonghwa’s hair, yanking hard enough to draw a moan from him. He settled a hand around Hongjoong’s neck and he felt his pulse under the pads of his fingers. Seonghwa shifted his attention to the other’s buttons, trying to undo them while pressing his thigh between Hongjoong’s legs. The shorter grinded against him and whimpered into his mouth.

Seonghwa pulled back for a moment, unable to get the bottom three undone. Hongjoong decided he didn’t have time for that, taking the two sides of his own shirt and jerked them apart hard enough to snap the buttons the rest of the way down. His abdomen was smooth, flat, with lines distinguishing the lean muscle beneath the skin. He was shaking with anticipation, shuddering under Seonghwa’s gaze. The older rushed to feel the exposed area, the heat of the day making him slick with sweat. Hongjoong tilted his chin up to expose the column of his neck, his hips stuttering in their movement as his erection strained against his pants.

“ _Seonghwa_ …,” he pleaded breathily, “Faster… want more,” his eyes shut painfully, mouth closing and brows furrowing.

Seonghwa leaned into him, mouth pressing against his collar bone. He felt the blood from his head rush downward, “I need you to be quiet,” his voice was rough, deep.

He nodded hurriedly, “ _Fuck_ , I don’t care about-” he held another moan back by biting his bottom lip as Seonghwa sucked the sensitive skin at the base of his neck, nipping at it, “... _Shit_ ,” he hissed through his teeth, “Keep going, keep…”

Hongjoong’s taste was addictive and he didn’t try to move from his grip when the younger began to slide the hem of his shirt up his own waist. He detached himself once again to wrestle the uniform the rest of the way off of him. The younger’s mouth was hanging open slightly, eyes unable to move from Seonghwa’s body. Hongjoong lifted a trembling hand to run down his front, his short fingers tracing the lines of definition. 

When he looked back up, Seonghwa was met with dark eyes and Hongjoong took the opportunity to recapture their kiss. It was hot, wet, and Seonghwa went dizzy from the overstimulation. He pinned Hongjoong’s wrist to the stall’s wall above his head, other hand reaching down to palm the younger. He moaned into Seonghwa’s mouth, high pitched and needy.

“Shit, you’re sensitive,” he felt himself getting harder.

Hongjoong’s body was solid against his, so completely human and more vulnerable than Seonghwa had ever seen him, “I need you… ’m-,” he breathed shakily, trying to control his voice, “Please…, _Hwa_ ,” he kissed at Seonghwa’s jaw and he sighed.

Seonghwa took Hongjoong’s other wrist to hold it above the shorter’s head in his hand, he undid the button of the younger’s pants yanking the zipper down so they fell to his mid-thigh. His lips attached themselves to Hongjoong’s neck once more as he reached into the boy’s boxers to wrap a hand around him. He cried out, muffling himself by pressing his face into Seonghwa’s shoulder.

Starting slowly, he stroked the other and took his time with increasing his pace. Hongjoong was falling apart, leaning his full weight against the stall and whining curses when Seonghwa would squeeze. He was heaving breaths, “ _Faster…_ ” he panted.

He did as asked, whimpers escaping Hongjoong as he bit lightly at the mark he had left on him. Hongjoong arched his back, head following the movement as he opened his mouth in a silent moan, eyes closed and expression filled with bliss. Seonghwa applied more pressure in every stroke, “You’re doing so well for me,” he trailed his kisses up his neck to his jaw, “ _so so good_.”

Hongjoong’s hips bucked forward, craving more contact, “ _Hwa_ ,” his voice was strained, airy and almost worryingly out of breath.

Seonghwa closed the gap between their chests, closing his eyes and pressing his lips to the corner of Hongjoong’s open mouth in a silent question. The younger shivered under his touch, seeking his lips until he caught them and forced them together with a strength that surprised him. His hand around Hongjoong’s wrists tightened and the other bit at his bottom lip in response, Seonghwa slowed down.

“ _Don’t stop_ ,” Hongjoong was _begging_ , flushed beautifully, eyes glassy with mist, “close… Hwa… ‘m so close.”

He pressed his forehead against the shorter’s, dropping the hand that bound Hongjoong’s wrists to cup his face. Seonghwa fit their lips together with ferocious desire, the lust radiating from the other being too overwhelming to not give in. His thumb rubbed circles into Hongjoong’s cheek as he worked him through his high. Hongjoong’s moaned cry was silenced by Seonghwa’s mouth as he came into his hand. A stray tear leaked from his eye and fell onto his cheek. The smaller body beneath his own seized, tensing entirely before falling forward weakly into Seonghwa’s chest. He shuddered with every breath. Seonhwa belatedly felt his own dick pressed hard against the fabric of his uniform, but it was not nearly painful enough to prioritize over the younger man in his arms.

Hongjoong let out a noise similar to that of a pur, inhaling rough breaths only to exhale sharply. In collapsing against him, he folded his arms across his chest so they took up the space between them. Seonghwa wrapped his arms around him, holding the back of his head in one hand while the other traced patterns onto his back with his fingers. He began to move them over to the counter lined with sinks, drifting carefully so it didn’t disturb the younger too much.

“Come on,” his voice rasped, “Hongjoong, I need to get you up.”

Hongjoong tightened his grip around him, shifting to have a better hold and unwilling to let go. Seonghwa sighed and lifted the other by hooking around his thighs and heaving him upward. A grunted protest came from Hongjoong, he rubbed his cheek against Seonghwa’s bare chest. He took his shoulders to push him back and keep him sitting properly.

The younger may have been drained before, but now he was _wrecked_. The tie he wore hung loosely over damp skin that was red from exertion. His eyes met Hongjoong’s face, his lips parted for rugged breaths that came weakly from his lungs. There was no worry in his brow for the first time since Seonghwa had met him, his eyes closed peacefully and expression, while clearly showing how spent he was, relaxed. 

“Can I get some paper towels to clean us up?” Seonghwa asked, brushing some of the hair from Hongjoong’s face.

He looked up blearily, eyes unfocused as he nodded; he removed his arms and let them fall to his lap where his boxers served as the only covering. Seonghwa parted from him and walked over to the paper towel dispenser, taking a good amount before returning to the other. Hongjoong stared blankly at the wall, looking as though he wasn’t truly present in his body.

Seonghwa washed off his own hands, drying them promptly as he turned his attention back to the younger. He took a wet paper towel and started to wipe away the mess he had made over his stomach. Hongjoong looked as though he didn’t appear to notice, staying completely still as Seonghwa cleaned him. The air was warm, and he could distantly hear the rain continuing to downpour outside. He looked towards the door, distracted by his thoughts until he heard a light sniff from in front of him.

When Seonghwa faced him, Hongjoong was blinking and shaking his head to rid himself of his haze, “Hey, you with me?” 

Hongjoong startled back from him like a frightened animal, eyes wild, “No… no, no, no,” his breathing picked up, “Dammit- no. I _can’t_ ,” he began to shake, breath quickening, “We- I- I didn’t want to,” he looked fragile and Seonghwa was reminded of Hongjoong’s state before their moment together.

“Hongjoong, what’s wrong? What…?” Seonghwa reached out to touch him, but he hesitated, “Talk to me, Hongjoong, what happened?”

His eyes were frantic, flying around the room until they landed on Seonghwa and he let out a noise akin to a sob, “You _can’t, please,_ I don’t want to-,” he thread his fingers through his hair, yanking so hard he looked as though he were hurting himself.

Seonghwa didn’t wait to move this time, gripping Hongjoong’s forearms and tearing them away, “Hongjoong, what the hell is-? Hey, you’re okay, calm down,” Hongjoong struggled against him, the worry returning to his face.

“Don’t tell anyone, _please,_ _I can’t leave,_ ” Hongjoong spoke fast, his eyes watery, “I don’t want to lose my job here I worked so hard I-I can’t get fired now, _Seonghwa,_ you-you can’t tell anyone. Please don’t-”

“I’m not going to tell anyone,” Seonghwa hushed him, loosening the hold he had around the other’s arms, “You need to breathe, come on, in and out, okay?”

Hongjoong tried to do as asked, hiccuping breaths getting caught in his throat, “Seonghwa, please, I can’t lose this job. I don’t want to, I want- I need to stay,” he pressed the heels of palms into his eye sockets, “We shouldn’t have done anything, it was a mistake.”

Seonghwa hushed him again, “I’m not going to say anything, I promise, take deep breaths. You’re okay, nobody's going anywhere,” he held Hongjoong’s hands in his own, rubbing his thumbs in small circles, “In and out,” he observed the younger’s efforts seeing him come back from the edge of panic, “You’re fine. You need to calm down, take care of yourself, I mean… shit, Hongjoong, you look like you haven’t slept in days.”

Hongjoong didn’t say anything, only listening.

He swallowed, “I don’t know why you did what you did, but you’re stressed and I get that. I do, sometimes you need to get it out of your system and let somebody else take control for once. You’re so tense and sensitive, Hongjoong, and you need to take time for yourself even if that’s by getting a handjob in the middle of your shift.”

The younger huffed in disapproval at that, “We can’t do this again, it shouldn’t have happened in the first place,” he kept his head down, “I’m sorry… I shouldn’t have made you-”

“You didn’t make me do anything,” Seonghwa placed a finger beneath Hongjoong’s chin to gently tilt his head up to lock their eyes, “Hongjoong,” he paused considering his next words carefully, “if this is something that helps you, and if it gets you to stop being so uptight about everything, I want to help.”

Hongjoong shook his head, “No, I can’t ask you to do that, we barely have the time as it is and it’s not appropriate. We would get caught, and then what?” He was obviously torn between two thoughts, “... But I haven’t felt that good in _so long_. I want everything to stop again, just for a little while.”

It was obvious to him that Hongjoong hadn’t done anything to cope with what he put himself through, there could be no other reason for this outburst, “It’s up to you, I just really think it’d help with your stress. I had never seen you more at ease and it doesn’t hurt anyone. We can’t get caught unless we tell someone or we do it out in the open. Hongjoong, you can have that, if it’s something you need to do to deal with pressure, I want to.”

“I… I can’t do this right now, I can’t think,” he licked his lips, wiping at dry cheeks, “I can’t think about it yet… I’m _so tired_ ,” his shoulders slumped and he let his head fall forward.

Seonghwa nodded, “Okay,” he reached down to pick up their discarded shirts, slipping his own over his head but not tucking it in. He held up Hongjoong’s shirt, stains and broken buttons and ripped threads completely disqualifying itself as something suitable for work, “Do you have an extra somewhere?”

“I was going to try and find one in the tunnels after yelling at you,” a blush creeped into Hongjoong’s cheeks.

He held back a laugh, allowing the corners of his lips to twist upward, “Straighten up,” he ordered.

Hongjoong did as told, he pulled his pants the rest of the way up and fastened them, letting Seonghwa slip his arms into the holes of the shirt and button the top few that remained. He decided to just tie the bottom up so it met the hem of his pants at his hips without showing how the excess thread from being torn. Seonghwa brushed his hands over the younger in an attempt to smooth out the wrinkles without any luck. The coffee stain was still obvious, but Hongjoong could deal with that until they found a new one.

Seonghwa took him by the arms, helping him to slip off of the counter, “Let’s go, I’ll walk you.”

“You don’t have to do that,” Hongjoong grumbled sheepishly, standing on wobbly legs that had him keeping his grip on Seonghwa’s arm for support.

“I’m sorry, but you look like you’re going to pass out any second and I don’t want you breaking your neck falling down the stairs.” 

Hongjoong walked alongside him, letting Seonghwa open the door for them and keep him steady until they reached the ‘Cast Members Only’ door. Seonghwa looked to see the rain still pouring, briefly wondering if he should actually _ask_ to sweep the water out of the way between Splash Mountain and the Tiki Room later. They made their way down the stairs, Hongjoong too focused on keeping himself upright to carry a conversation.

The moment their feet left the bottom step, Hongjoong let out a sigh of relief, “Seonghwa?”

He hummed to let the younger know he was listening.

“I don’t feel so good.”

Seonghwa looked over to see Hongjoong pale, “Shit, did you even take your break today? Eaten? Had anything to drink?”

He shook his head, “No.”

“What are you saying ‘no’ to?” The older insisted.

Hongjoong winced, “All of it,” his fingers around Seonghwa’s arm dug into the skin harshly, “The dressing room, right there,” he nodded in the direction of a door down the hall, “it’s usually vacant I can wait in there for a minute.”

“Okay, yeah,” Seonghwa walked quickly, trying not to jostle him, they approached the door and he turned the knob. With a harsh kick to it, the stiff hinges moved and the door swung open.

“Holy shit!” An unfamiliar voice shouted and Seonghwa watched a boy, a couple of inches shorter than him, jump and nearly trip over a bag on the floor. He stared at the pair in the doorway for a few seconds followed by a head tilt, “Hongjoong? Oh my God, are you okay?”

Hongjoong waved him off, “I’m fine, Wooyoung,” he parted from Seonghwa and the older went to hold onto him again, but he shook his head, “I’m just going to sit down,” he collapsed into the lone chair on the other end of the room, holding his head in his hands.

“What the hell happened?” The boy, Wooyoung, asked, keeping his distance, “And who are you?” He turned to Seonghwa, pointing.

“Nothing happened,” Hongjoong lied, “I’m not feeling well, I think it’s from the heat and dehydration. Don’t worry about it. Do you have an extra button down?”

“Yeah? Why? What’s wrong with the one you’re wearing?”

Hongjoong pinched the bridge of his nose, “Coffee stain and the last buttons came off,” he supplied.

Wooyoung picked the bag at his feet up off the ground, digging through it, “I’m sorry, who are you?” He asked again.

“Seonghwa, Park Seonghwa,” he answered, “I’m a custodian for AdventureLand, I work under him.”

The stranger’s head shot up, eyes widening, “ _You’re Seonghwa?_ ” His expression was disbelieving, “I’ve never met you before, Hongjoong, this is him?”

Hongjoong groaned, “That’s him,” he confirmed, leaning against the back of his seat, “Don’t start.”

Wooyoung walked up to Seonghwa, looking at him curiously, “I’ve heard so much about you.”

He lifted his eyes to stare at Hongjoong, the other not looking up to meet his gaze. Part of Seonghwa didn’t want to know all of what hongjoong had said about him.


	11. So This Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inside of Yunho was a vast ocean, deep and endless and completely isolating. Mingi was an anchor, and he didn't mind being the one taken down with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi lovelies, I'm so sorry for such a large delay. A lot of things have been happening in my personal life and I wasn't able to focus or spend as much time writing. Hopefully I can get back on schedule and you all enjoy the softness of this chapter after the last one 0_0. You all mean so much to me and I couldn't be happier that you all are as invested in this as I am. Feedback is always loved and appreciated, stay safe !!
> 
> p.s. I fell in love with Yunho pt. 2

**Jeong Yunho**

**Position: After Hour Security, Magic Kingdom Park**

Yunho took a deep breath, bouncing on the balls of his feet as he waited outside of the restrooms. The anticipation for their night together was building fast, ever since he had been asked he couldn’t stop smiling. Even Seonghwa could tell something was up with him over the phone that morning. After a few texts sent between them, he had convinced Mingi that it’d be best if he drove. He would have to leave for his shift immediately after and the younger caved when he was told that he could have a few drinks if he wasn’t going to be behind the wheel.

Mingi had said he made a reservation at Planet Hollywood, which was allegedly one of the louder restaurants Downtown but he didn’t mind. While Yunho knew that there wasn’t anything that could possibly go wrong, his nerves were skyrocketing. He hadn’t gone out with friends in so long he forgot what people do, at least what to do when hanging out for the first time. Sure, Seonghwa and Jongho were great company, but they were familiar and he didn’t need to worry about what to say or do or how to act. With Mingi it was different, he had never hung out with him one-on-one before and he worried that, after tonight, the younger would decide he didn’t like him anymore.

The sun was nearing the point of setting as the summer nights made the days longer. Warm air carried by a light breeze blew past him on occasion, it was perfect. Taking a deep breath, he looked up to see Mingi walking out from the mens restroom. He was dressed simply, a yellow shirt and ripped light wash jeans, though the added detail of the silver chain against the tan skin of his neck stood out to him. The younger’s face lit up upon seeing him, just as it had when Yunho picked him up only ten minutes before, his smile reaching all the way to his eyes. 

“Hey,” Mingi spoke breathlessly, “Are you ready?”

Yunho nodded minutely, “Yeah, you?” 

“Mhm,” he took out his phone, “Our reservation is in five so we should head over there now.”

They began to walk alongside each other, close enough for their shoulders to bump every now and then. Yunho bit the inside of his cheek, trying not to let his smile grow too wide. Mingi looked at ease, watching the people that passed them. He mentioned offhandedly that he wished he could see better through the Parlor’s windows so he would have a clear view of all the tourists. There was something about looking at others, and the snippets of their lives he just so happened to see, that satisfied Mingi. Yunho felt the same way, unable to put the feeling into words that seemed to come so easily to the younger. Tonight was the first evening out for him in a long time and he knew the light feeling that floated inside of him wasn’t solely caused by the boy next to him, but rather the experiences he brought as well. To him, time passed quickly. He hardly had a moment to tether himself to something or someone and breathe. Mingi slowed the world down for him, the air was warmer and his head felt fuzzy when the other would accidentally get too close.

“You haven’t eaten here before, right?” Mingi asked him as they approached the large, dome-shaped building. 

“No, I haven’t, Seonghwa usually takes us to Raglan or that Wolfgang Puck Express place when we come here together,” he stepped aside to let the other enter first, feeling the cool wind from the air conditioning brush past him. The music from within the core of the restaurant reverberated through the walls, “We like to stick to the stores, Jongho hates going with us in the more crowded ones, though.”

“I love them. I know the merchandise is kind of corny, but they make good gifts and the look on San’s face when he gets to buy a new plushie is priceless. You should see the apartment, he leaves them around everywhere and I’m always having to pick up after him. He practically surrounds himself with the damn things on the couch until I get home,” Mingi strode up to the hostess, speaking low enough that Yunho could only make out a few of the words.

Yunho looked around the waiting area, there were two sets of stairs in the center that lead upward to the first floor of the restaurant above the lobby. The hostess gathered the tablecloth-wrapped silverware and asked them to follow her. As they made their way up the steps, Mingi nudged him with his elbow and nodded to the glass cases that lined the walls. Costumes from Disney’s most popular movies were hung perfectly on the mannequins along with other knick knacks from the respective sets.

“Look, look at the Jack Sparrow one!” Mingi’s voice was hushed with contained excitement, “I haven’t been here since they redid everything- look its Dorothy’s dress,” he pointed to the one at the end of the row, “it’s not as colorful as I thought it would be,” the younger furrowed his eyebrows.

He held back a laugh, not that Mingi would have heard him considering the music was infinitely louder the second they stepped into the central area of the building.

“You’ll be seated on the second floor that's just up here,” she guided them up through a staircase that had more artifacts from movies as well as other decor along the walls, “Right this way,” they rounded the bar and the woman seated them at a small table directly next to the railing so they could look down over the other patrons on the first floor.

Barely a few seconds had passed before another woman came by, placing menus in front of them, “Hello, my name is Sana, I’ll be taking care of you this evening. Can I start you off with something to drink?”

Mingi ordered some sort of draft beer that Yunho didn’t exactly hear while he decided to stick with water. She smiled at the two of them, explaining that they’ll be right out in a few moments. After she left the table Yunho looked forward only to find Mingi already staring at him.

“Anyway, we were talking about shopping?”

Yunho nodded, falling silent for a moment as the waitress popped up with their drinks and left just as quickly, “I’m indifferent to it, I guess, I hate going places by myself and I’ve told you about how my schedule overlaps with Jongho and Seonghwa’s schedule. Speaking of, Seonghwa actually called me on my way to pick you up going off about how his supervisor was on the verge of losing it today.”

“I heard the same thing from San,” he took a sip of his drink, eyes blowing wide, “Wait, what area does Seonghwa work?”

“He works AdventureLand… didn’t I tell you?”

“No! Seonghwa must have been the custodian he was telling me about last week. The one who was assigned to clean the Jungle Cruise while maintenance was taking care of the animatronics.”

“The maintenance guy that day was Jongho,” he added, lips parted at the realization, “San has known my roommates this whole time,” a groan escaped him, leaning his back against the chair and rubbing at his eyes, “how did I miss that?”

“How did _I_ miss that?” Mingi sounded equally disappointed in himself, “San doesn’t stop talking about everyone he meets, he must’ve left out names… or I tuned out by the time he got to them. That blows my mind, holy shit, so that means they have the same boss too, wow…”

“They have very different ideas of Hongjoong,” Yunho recalled how often Seonghwa would rant to him nonstop, it almost made him laugh at the thought.

Mingi snapped his fingers, “Yes! That’s his name, Hongjoong. I’ve been trying to think of it this whole time, San has known him for… what? Two? Three years?” The question was posed for himself, he nodded in affirmation, “Something like that. I haven’t gotten the chance to meet him myself, but I think I remember San saying that he’s really uptight now.”

“Yeah, that’s what Seonghwa always says. I think he’s spoiled from being there for so long, nothing was worse than our time at Epcot. There was nowhere to sit down in private over there and the place I patrolled was always empty, but somehow constantly littered with trash.”

The waitress came back and asked them for their order. Yunho completely flushed, not having looked at the menu yet, but Mingi was already in the midst of ordering. When the woman looked to him his mind went blank, “Sorry,” he mumbled to himself, eyes catching Mingi’s that immediately filled with understanding.

“He’ll have the same as me,” he supplied for him, “Thank you.”

Yunho nodded, “Yeah, thank you,” his ears burned as she walked off from them with their menus, “Sorry about that.”

The younger shook his head, “It’s my fault I distracted you, don’t worry about it, you’re going to like what I got for us.”

Yunho tried to ignore the feeling of his heart stuttering at ‘ _us_ ’, “Like I was saying, Seonghwa was treated worse at Epcot and now that he’s at Magic Kingdom he got used to the better conditions. He’s trying to find something to complain about because that’s just something he likes to do. I think he believes it makes work more interesting if there are highs _and_ lows to talk about.”

“You don’t talk about Epcot very much,” Mingi pointed out.

The older was taken off guard for a moment, shaking his head with a breathy chuckle, “No, I don’t, do I?”

“Why did you switch?”

“Seonghwa wanted to, I wanted to go with him,” Yunho spoke tentatively, “because he was the only one at the park who bothered to make friends with me. I worked the night shift there too, we ended up talking pretty fast because of our assigned location being understaffed compared to others.”

“Are you two… together?” Mingi asked, his finger tracing patterns in the condensation of his glass.

Yunho put his hands up, “No, no, definitely not. We’re really good friends, but nothing like that ever happened between us.”

“Oh,” Mingi smiled, almost in relief though Yunho refused to let himself believe it, “Well, h-how did you end up as a security guard anyway? I feel like it doesn’t really suit you, if I’m honest I feel like you’d prefer a more interactive job.”

“You’re not wrong,” he scratched at the back of his neck, anxiety clawing its way up his chest, “When I first came here I auditioned to be a dancer for the World Showcase,” he rubbed his thumb and index finger together, a nervous habit, “the competition there isn’t horrible, but you have to have the right look and the style is heavily dependent on what country your appearance is best suited to.”

He nodded, “You didn’t get in?” His voice was sympathetic, but not pitying.

“No, I didn’t. When I was younger my parents wanted me to have proper training for a ‘real job’, so when I moved here I also sent in an application for nighttime security since it’s the easiest to get into. Epcot was understaffed at the time because of the construction going on there and a lot of their regular guards were pushed to day shift,” he licked his lips, “Seonghwa always likes to say that it’s lucky I didn’t end up being a performer, they get treated horribly by management and the tourists can be more irritable.”

“Why are they more irritable?” Mingi placed an elbow on the table, propping his head up in his hand, “I always thought that park was one of the more relaxed ones.”

“Me too, but the countries are required to hire people who fit the race or at least seem to look the part. Most of them are foreign and aren’t completely fluent in English, Seonghwa once told me he watched one of the workers in Mexico get yelled at by this guy because he didn’t fully understand him. I don’t know,” he sighed, “the thought always freaked me out, so I’m kind of grateful I wasn’t accepted.”

“Still, it’s okay to have wanted to get in, you don’t have to feel completely one way or the other about something.”

Yunho nodded, arm moving to mirror Mingi’s position, he stayed silent for a few moments as he tried to gather his thoughts.

Mingi spoke instead, “You still wish you had gotten in, don’t you?”

He felt that familiar emptiness, the same as when he had gotten his rejection statement. With a shake of his head he forced the thought to dissipate, “Yeah,” his voice was small, unsure, “I always wondered how it would’ve felt to actually do it and show that I could,” he averted his eyes to look at the large display of screens where music videos played on a loop, “I miss performing in high school and in college I was apart of unofficial groups and I assumed I would be able to continue,” it was as though his brain was running out of words, not used to talking about such things, “When I made the transfer to Magic Kingdom, I didn’t see the point in auditioning again.”

The younger pressed his lips into a thin line, “Why?”

“If I couldn’t make it in Epcot, how could I have made it here? The competition is so much bigger, there was too much risk and I didn’t… I didn’t want that rejection again, you know?”

“I think I do,” Mingi spoke softly, he lifted his hand over the table, hesitating before reaching out to gently cover Yunho’s own, “I’m sure you’re better than you think. If it’s something you still want to do, you shouldn’t let that fear stop you. There will always be that possibility, you can’t ignore that. Coming from someone who gets scared of the same thing,” his eyes fell to their hands and Yunho’s heart stopped, mind racing to arrange the puzzle pieces the other had scarcely been giving him. The distraction of Mingi’s voice stopped him before he could put them together, abandoning the train of thought, “It’s worth trying for, if it makes you happy. You may not act like it, but you aren’t satisfied with what you’re doing. At least not right now, maybe you could be in the future or under different circumstances. Even still,” his thumb ran over the back of Yunho’s hand, a comforting gesture that resonated to his core, “you can’t hold yourself back because of doubt.”

The music became white noise to him, eyes focused on Mingi’s finger tips that drew senseless designs on his skin, “I’m happy I met you. That’s… That has been something that helped me move past it, I don’t regret taking the night guard position anymore because I wouldn’t have gotten to know you. While I may not love my job as much Seonghwa or get to meet as many people as Jongho, they don’t get to have you like I do. Seonghwa has a lot of friends, ones that he can go out with and enjoy being around. Jongho prefers being alone, but he could make plans if he truly wanted to. You asked me a few days ago why I didn’t tell them about you, and I said it was so I could have you to myself. I really meant that,” he glanced up to lock eyes with Mingi, the other’s cheeks rose-tinted and gaze unwavering, “You’re not something I want to keep secret or something I don’t think of, you’re just too special and I’m too selfish to share you.”

“Yunho, you should know that I-,” he cut himself off, shaking his head and squeezing his eyes shut, “If you’re selfish, I’m selfish too,” he admitted simply, the look in his eyes downcast, “More than you know, I am, and I’m sorry for making you talk about something that you obviously didn’t want to relive.”

He shifted in his seat, moving closer to the table and placing a firm grip onto the hand Mingi had over his own so it was locked between the two of his, “No, don’t say that, you didn’t force me to talk. I wanted to. Everytime I’m with you we talk so much I feel like I already know every inch of you and you know every inch of me. Yet, somehow, I learn more about myself and that almost makes it better. It’s easy with you, you’re not like anyone I’ve met before…,” it struck him then, looking at the younger, his feelings were so much stronger than simplistic admiration or platonic affection. They weren’t light ripples in water, but rather large crashing waves. He was corrupted by the urge to pull the other in tight and keep him for his own. His breath stuck in his throat, it was as though Mingi froze time and it was only the two of them.

“You’re so much more than you think, Yunho, that’s how I know you’re different. Even though you’re lonely and want to speak, you don’t use your voice. Instead, you choose to listen and you’re so good at it, _too good_. You prefer to take the backseat and no matter how much you want to take control of the wheel, you won’t say anything because you hold yourself back. I know you think your intentions are self-serving, I disagree, if I’m the one thing you want to have for yourself I’ll be there for you and only you.”

There was a promise in his words, punctuated by the intense sincerity in his eyes. Yunho felt the raging ocean inside of him be still, the calm before the inevitable storm. His heart eroded, leaving him exposed and vulnerable against the push and pull of the emotions brewing deep in his chest. The tugging at his center was foreign. A sinking sensation completely unknown thrust him under and he could feel himself giving into it. His conscious gasped for air, not wanting to be trapped under the crushing pressure. Yunho was a goner the moment Mingi smiled at him, then, he was completely submerged. As plain and as painful as drowning, he had fallen for the boy who was right in front of him from the start.


	12. I Wonder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yeosang wasn't too picky when it came to boys, all he really wanted was someone who made him comfortable which just so happened to be a rare quality that very few people possessed. So what if one in particular made it so easy that he found himself not needing a glass of wine to get drunk on the sound of his voice?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello angels !! This chapter has quite a few underlying plot points so make sure to pay attention to the details ;) Things start to get a move on in this one, so I hope you all enjoy this dialogue-heavy mess 0_0 As always, feedback is appreciated and loved <3 Stay safe !!
> 
> p.s. my irl proof reader caught feelings for Jongho and I'm sure you all will to >:)

**Kang Yeosang**

**Position: Haunted Mansion Employee, Magic Kingdom Park**

“Wooyoung, could you go in and let the hostess know we’re here?” Hongjoong said, a hand coming up to run through his hair as he stood on his phone, face lit by the screen.

The time was nearing eleven o’clock, the Magic Kingdom having closed at ten, and Wooyoung had managed to convince Hongjoong and Yeosang to go out for drinks. He had a long day, the rainy weather and humidity being enough to put him in a sour mood. Mina had told him she was taking her day off tomorrow which left him without a second greeter for the last shift, a role he didn’t exactly want to take on again. Han would at least be assigned the same hours so Yeosang wouldn’t have to do all of the talking.

The ride’s smaller attractions, extra interactive props integrated into the waiting area for guests and their children to entertain themselves while in line, stopped functioning properly after only two hours of being there. As a result, he had to deal with several complaints from parents and, at one point, a crying child who had wanted to play with the moving bookcase. When he had a moment to find Rosé and ask her to call for maintenance, she had informed him that the issue wasn’t considered important enough to halt entry. He had to put up with more complaints throughout the day, here and there. When the rain had picked up later into the evening he was forced to set up the umbrella so Han and Mina could stay dry. The action was counterproductive in a way, it had ended with his uniform being drenched and he had to take the last break of his shift to change into a spare they had in the storage room. 

He had managed to find Wooyoung in the tunnels just before closing. The younger had begged Yeosang to ask Hongjoong if they could go Downtown for drinks, maybe something to eat. Wooyoung, though, faltered slightly when he requested they do such a thing after he recounted how Hongjoong looked ready to collapse earlier that day. However, when they had found him waiting at the AdventureLand sign to leave for the day, he looked more refreshed and unburdened by daily stress than Yeosang had seen in a long time. Which is why they stood in the Raglan Road entrance waiting to be seated, hopefully at the bar if they were lucky enough to have space. 

Wooyoung caught his eye and waved them over, the loud music of the live performers being too much to try and call out to them. He nudged Hongjoong with his elbow, the older looking up with a bewildered expression as though he had forgotten where he was. The shorter muttered an apology, shutting off his phone and pocketing it. They caught up to Wooyoung, following along behind him as he trailed the hostess. Applause filled the pub, the singer upon the stage bowing with his guitar while the dancer next to him clapped with the audience. The establishment wasn’t nearly as crowded as Yeosang had feared it to be, likely because it was an hour shy of midnight on a Thursday night and most people were home preparing for the following day of work. When they were seated, Yeosang took the center spot while Wooyoung and Hongjoong sat at his sides.

Wooyoung tapped on the surface of the table, “Okay who’s going to take one for the team and drive home? Not it,” he put a finger on his nose, emphasizing his statement.

Yeosang looked to Hongjoong, who typically refused to drink because he hated how ‘loose’ it made him.

“I think I might actually have something tonight,” he scooted himself forward on his stool, “That okay?” His eyes were on Yeosang, a genuine question in them.

“What? Yeah, that’s fine, totally okay,” he answered quickly, words rushed and laced with surprise, “Are you sure?”

Hongjoong pushed the slightly longer hair at the sides of his face behind his ears, “I’m feeling kind of good right now, I wouldn’t mind getting at least a little buzzed. I figured I haven’t had a drink in a while and it shouldn’t hurt too much.”

Yeosang distantly heard the sound of a guitar being played from the stage, the corners of his lips twitching up at the memory of the last time Hongjoong had gotten tipsy, “So what happened today that made you change your mind? Wooyoung told me you were practically seconds from crashing when you barged into his dressing room. Did you pass out or something? Did you hit your head and knock the stress right out?”

The older shoved his shoulder, causing him to lean slightly into Wooyoung’s side and earning an annoyed glare as the latter was ordering his drink, “No,” Hongjoong looked down at his hands, rubbing circles into the skin on the back of his hand with his opposing thumb, “I was having a rough day, but, I don’t know, my mood made a turn for the better,” he paused for a few moments, “and I _didn’t_ barge in, Wooyoung’s over exaggerating.”

“Like he always does,” Yeosang added.

Wooyoung huffed from beside him, “I wasn’t exaggerating, he really did barge in,” he rolled his eyes, “ _technically_ it was Seonghwa who did the barging, but still-”

“Wait, you met Seonghwa?” Yeosang whipped his head to face Hongjoong, “ _He_ met Seonghwa?”

Hongjoong thanked the bartender as she turned away to start mixing, “Huh? Oh, right,” his cheeks colored the smallest bit, a detail he didn’t miss, “I wasn’t feeling well and the only one around was Seonghwa, so he helped me get to the tunnels. It was a coincidence that Wooyoung was in there when we came in.”

The woman served their drinks to them silently, the two accepting with a nod and quiet ‘thank you’s. Wooyoung swirled the clear liquid around in the glass, “Was he the reason your shirt was destroyed?”

Hongjoong, who was in the middle of a sip of red wine, coughed a bit, “What?”

Yeosang held the same curious look, “Wait, what happened to his shirt?”

“There was coffee all over it, wasn’t he the one who spilled it?” Wooyoung raised an eyebrow, putting a hand on Yeosang’s arm to get his attention, “That’s another reason he came down, he needed to borrow one of mine because there was a huge stain and some of the buttons came off.”

Yeosang stared at the shorter to his right, “How the hell did that happen? Did he throw coffee on you? Are you going to report him to management and get him fired?” He rattled off questions, more peeved than he’d like to admit that he wasn’t included or told about this sooner.

“No!” Hongjoong raised his voice, not without earning a look from one of the other guests sitting nearby despite the music drowning his voice out to those surrounding them, “It was an accident. One of the employees at Aladdin was holding my cup for me, and when he went to give it back he dropped it,” he took another swig, “After that I was stopped by San-”

“Which one’s San?” Yeosang asked. Between Hongjoong and Wooyoung, some names blurred together, “Is he the one that asked for Wooyoung’s number?”

Hongjoong put his glass on the bar, turning fully in his chair to face him, “I’m sorry, San gave you his number while he was on the job? I swear to God if I have to do paperwork tomorrow because of him…,” his voice trailed off, his eyes unfocusing as he began to get lost in thought.

Wooyoung, with an undertone of panic out of fear of Hongjoong reverting to his anxiety-ridden state from earlier in the day, pulled him from his mind, “No, no, Joong, he was on his break. Remember? It was the day you were doing evals and you sent him on his fifteen.”

He hummed, rubbing at his face, “Still,” he closed his eyes, lifted the glass to his lips and let the wine sit on his tongue before swallowing, “I don’t think it’s professional,” he bit at his bottom lip, nerves making themselves known.

Yeosang looked at the other, they shared a common thought. There was something off about their eldest roommate, his attitude was unpredictable. One moment he was seemingly serene, the next he was teasing, then silent with worry, and the cycle would start again. Wooyoung simply shrugged, “Anyway, you were saying, Joong?”

“Right, so I had to handle some things with a guest and a missing stroller. Which ended with me having to make a call to FrontierLand and I found out that Seonghwa wasn’t doing his job,” his voice was hesitant, brows furrowed as he shook his head. He lacked the usual tone of disdain, “I went to find him and when I did I started to feel really light headed, when he started to walk me to the tunnels my shirt got caught on a door handle and tore it. We found Wooyoung already in the dressing room by the time we got there.”

The youngest nodded enthusiastically, “He is completely different from what Hongjoong has been telling us.”

“You mean he’s not a total prick? Yeah, I figured as much,” Yeosang chuckled, “His friend, Jongho, told me a lot about him. I can’t believe you got to meet him before I did, I even know his roommate and your luck _still_ won out.”

The younger’s eyes locked on a space beyond Hongjoong and Yeosang, a spot behind them, and his mouth fell open, “Well,” he cleared his throat, “I don’t think you’ll have to wait much longer,” he looked down and swallowed the remaining liquor from his glass.

Yeosang turned so fast he nearly got whiplash. Hongjoong froze in his chair and, while he couldn’t see his face, he was sure he wore the same expression he had, “Holy shit, _that’s_ Seonghwa?” He whispered.

The man, who he accurately assumed was the troublesome custodian, stood tall in a way Yeosang would usually consider cocky if it weren’t for the large eyes that gave an impression of innocence. Though the pub was dim, he could make out the features of his face that were somehow powerful and delicate all at once. His black hair was styled and parted to the side perfectly, the oversized white T-shirt he wore exposed his collarbones and cinched at his waist where it was tucked into a pair of jeans. Next to him stood someone slightly shorter who was dressed in a few more layers despite the warmth of the night air.

“No way,” his breath caught in his throat, “Wooyoung,” he hit the boy next to him multiple times to get his attention, “ _Wooyoung_.”

“What?” He said impatiently, “What is it?” His voice was a mix of a whisper and a shout.

“That’s him, the guy, Jongho, the one I told you about,” Yeosang could feel his face reddening and he desperately wished he forced Hongjoong to drive, he needed a drink, “Oh my God, he’s coming over here.”

The two men at the entrance were being escorted to the bar by the hostess, talking amongst themselves as they hadn’t noticed the three of them staring. They were coming their way and would no doubt be seated directly next to them. The closer they had gotten into view, Wooyoung gasped from behind him.

“You were right, he _is_ a total babe,” he smacked Yeosang’s back, “for a maintenance guy he isn’t too bad, my _God_.” 

Yeosang reached forward to tap Hongjoong’s shoulder, who continued to sit frozen. This didn’t deter him, though, “and Seonghwa,” he said, adding to Wooyoung’s statement, “Joong, you didn’t mention that he was that _fine_.”

He heard the older release a shaky exhale mumble of, “I think I’m going to be sick,” coming out so quietly he almost missed it.

Seonghwa was the first to spot them, lips parting in shock as he frantically scanned over them. His mouth moved around words Yeosang couldn’t hear as they closed the distance, the woman sitting them down with just a chair separating them from where Hongjoong sat on the end. Jongho met his gaze, his face was on fire.

“Yeosang,” his voice was light, disbelieving, “hey, what are you doing here?”

Since he didn’t want to sit awkwardly, and because he wasn’t impolite, he stood, extending a hand in greeting for Jongho to take, “Hi, my roommates and I decided to have some drinks. Hongjoong had a long day, so we wanted to have a night out to escape the apartment.”

He shifted his stare to Seonghwa who was standing silently behind Jongho, shyness plaguing his posture and forcing him to face the ground. Wooyoung, whose extraversion was something Yeosang was now grateful for, stood up as well to greet them, “I’m Wooyoung, hi,” he offered a hand that Jongho accepted.

“Jongho,” he supplied.

“Nice to finally meet you,” he smiled, continuing on to the man that stood behind him, “Seonghwa, it’s good to see you again.”

“Likewise,” Seonghwa shook himself from his daze, focusing elsewhere, “Yeosang, is it?”

He nodded, “I feel like Jongho and Hongjoong have told me so much I already know you,” he looked to the latter who was still keeping his gaze downcast as to avoid eye contact with the custodian. Something had to have happened.

“I’ve been hearing that a lot lately,” Seonghwa sat down next to Hongjoong, “Hello, _Captain_ ,” his voice was mocking and drenched in an emotion that Yeosang had trouble giving a name.

Jongho sat on the opposing side of Seonghwa, blush colored his cheeks as the bartender came up to them and asked what they wanted. Seonghwa ordered red wine, looking at Hongjoong’s glass as he did so, while Jongho stuck with a draft.

“Do you mind if I sit?” Yeosang gestured towards the empty chair next to the younger.

“Oh, yeah, of course go ahead,” he pulled it out for him, letting the other settle back down before proceeding, “Not having anything?”

“No, unfortunately I’m stuck driving tonight since Hongjoong felt up to drinking for the first time in months,” he leaned forward on his elbows and watched as Jongho slipped the jean jacket off his arms. His throat dried at the sight of the muscle there, the uniform he wore during the typically covering his biceps or all the way down to the middle of his forearm. Jongho’s hair was parted, exposing his forehead, there was a thin sheen of sweat there that was likely caused by the combination of jeans, a jacket, _and_ a T-shirt in the late evening heat of summer. The black fabric clung to his silhouette and Yeosang thanked the dark pub for hiding his visible reaction to the younger.

“You mentioned Hongjoong had a rough day?” Jongho took the glass the bartender dropped off and brought it to his lips.

He nodded, smiling as the sense of comfort he usually felt around him filled his chest, “Seonghwa didn’t tell you?”

He shook his head, drinking more as though he was a thirsty man in a drought.

“Isn’t he supposed to tell you everything?” He propped his chin up on his hand, “Here I thought you had a good relationship with your roommate.”

“Bold talk for someone who had to be told what happened to their own roommate _hours_ after it happened,” Wooyoung called out from next to Hongjoong, which only got him a sharp elbow to the ribs from the latter and a harsh, whispered scolding not to shout. Seonghwa laughed behind his hand as he observed the two have it out with one another.

Yeosang shook his head, “I’m sorry, they don’t get out much. I don’t think they know how to act in public anymore, maybe I should get some new friends.”

Jongho hummed, swallowing a few more sips in a matter of seconds, “Funny, I’ve been thinking the same thing lately.”

His breath caught. This was his chance to push forward, to take that next step Wooyoung has been telling him to. There was a brief silence that lasted just long enough for there to be a definite shift in the air between them. He forced himself to work through his fear, forcing his heartbeat to slow, “Well, maybe I could be your new friend. We can go out, just the two of us, together next saturday after the park closes. My treat.”

Jongho placed his glass down on the bar, the condensation dripping half onto the polished wood and half onto a damp napkin, “What exactly is this going to be?” He mirrored Yeosang’s position so they faced each other and his back was to the others, allowing themselves as much privacy as they could manage. The younger’s lips split into a smile, one that knocked the air from Yeosang’s chest.

“It can be whatever you’d like it to be,” his eyes traveled over the other’s body, searching for signs of discomfort or potential rejection, “That is, if you’d still like to go,” he kept his words even in an attempt to cover up the nervousness pounding away at his heart.

“I do,” Jongho replied, quick enough that Yeosang nearly missed it, “Where would you be taking me?” 

“Somewhere nice, I’m not going to take my new _friend_ somewhere that isn’t worth his time-”

Hongjoong, from where he sat a few feet away yelped as Wooyoung threw his arms around his shoulders and almost knocked them over, “Yeosang, we need to go before he tries to order another glass. He’s had three already and I am _not_ going to take care of him in the backseat if he starts-”

“Yeah, yeah,” Yeosang slipped off of his stool, “Okay, give me a moment,” he took out his wallet and placed a ten on the bar, sliding it over to Jongho, “Buy another drink, on me,” he let a hand settle on the younger’s shoulder, not looking into his eyes out of fear of bursting into flames, squeezing and letting go. He walked up to Wooyoung and took his arm, “Come on, let’s get you home.”

With a silent pout, Wooyoung nodded, “I’m sleepy, anyway,” his speech was on the verge of slurring, well into tipsy and one drink away from drunk, “I might nap in the car,” he ran a clumsy hand through his dark hair.

“Sure, because the ten minutes it takes to get back are _so_ worth it,” Yeosang rolled his eyes, “Hongjoong, you paid?”

The shorter nodded, “Alright,” before he stood he leaned in close to Seonghwa, whispered words getting lost in the music and conversations of the other patrons. Seonghwa, who refused to turn and face the shorter man, licked his lips and shook his head ambiguously.

Yeosang made a mental note to keep a close eye on his roommate, “Hongjoong, let’s go,” he called again, sighing and starting towards the exit.

He looked back once as Hongjoong joined him, catching Jongho’s gaze. Yeosang looked away, not wanting to overthink any messages his eyes could have carried. He would save his thoughts for the time when his head hit the pillow and he could indulge his nerves.


	13. In a World Of My Own

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> San was alone. He was stranded by himself on his own island where nobody had come for him until he decided to reach out to one boy that would take his hand and weather the harshness of loneliness with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiii... haha 0_0 okay I'm sorry please forgive me for taking so long to upload again. unfortunately, my schedule will be inconsistent these next few weeks as I'm settling back into school and all. still, I hope this chapter was worth the wait. thank you so much for sticking with me and these boys :) Im grateful for every one of you !! please stay safe and enjoy this angst filled chapter !! feedback is always welcomed and appreciated <3
> 
> p.s. in advance, im so sorry

**Choi San**

**Position: Jungle Cruise Employee, Magic Kingdom Park**

San took a deep breath, readjusting the strap of his duffel bag over his shoulder to pull open the zipper and search through it. The sky was dark, the time nearing eleven o’clock, and the only light was that of the apartment complex. An airy breeze floated past him, not quite chilly enough for him to feel any relief from the heat. He took the keys that were stuffed beneath his used uniform at the bottom of the bag, shoving them into the door and turning the handle.

The apartment was always so empty when he got home. He closed the door behind him, relocking it and kicking off his boots. There wasn’t a single shred of light, save for the small one plugged into the wall. The darkness was unwelcoming as he walked further into the apartment, only when he made contact with the set of switches along the wall did the room become awash with light. He ran a hand through his hair, dropping his things at the entrance to his bedroom and dragging himself over to the couch.

With a huff, he dropped down onto the plush cushions and leaned his head against the back to stare up at the ceiling. The silence was deafening, not a single creak of the floorboards or the distant sound of a door shutting to break it. He knew he shouldn’t be using the couch when he hadn’t taken so much as a shower, but he didn’t have the energy to do much of anything at the moment. The sweatpants and T-shirt he wore were comfortable enough to stay in. He reopened his eyes, shifting his position so he was lying down and could press his cheek into the grainy fabric. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted a stray stuffed animal on the ground next to him. He stretched his arm down to it, taking the round, soft duck in his hand before tucking it against his chest. There was something about being home alone that deeply unsettled him, he couldn’t sleep when Mingi wasn’t in the apartment.

After he didn’t make it into the performance program, he distanced himself from everyone he knew. He had a roommate before Mingi, they were never really friends in the first place but, after several months of San failing to communicate with him, the boy left. When he auditioned, he hadn’t prepared for the fallout of rejection. After being placed into a new position and losing a roommate all at the same time, he cut himself off. San didn’t make it possible for people to get to know him at work because he didn’t want to stay there in the first place.

Jin was nice enough to tell him he needed to at least try to be warmer towards his coworkers, otherwise they’d need to have a discussion with management and that was the last thing San needed. The threat wasn’t made to scare him, he knew that it was more of a reminder than anything, but the small fear of being fired is what encouraged him to wear a mask in the first place. He would be happy and friendly even if he didn’t feel like it. There was no shame in it, most people who were Disney employees _had_ to wear the mask sometimes.

San held the stuffed animal even tighter to his chest, wanting to stop his thoughts from dwelling on the past. He missed Hongjoong. He missed the Hongjoong that was still an usher for the Pirates of the Caribbean and was there for him when he hadn’t had anyone like Mingi there next to him. There was always the part of his mind that he kept hidden when he would see Hongjoong, that small hope that he would go back to normal and be there for San like he was before. The idea was selfish, a wish he would never actually let pass through his lips. Still, he held on to it when he would see his friend crippling under the weight of his own stress and was too busy to give San a second thought.

He had always felt _off_ in some way, like somehow not making it into the performance program made him defective. It was as though he wore a sign around his neck that told everyone how he messed up his one opportunity.

Going to work wasn’t ever as bad as he imagined it to be, he was okay once he was there. He’d even go as far as to say he loved it now that he was comfortable and familiar with everyone. At home, though, that doubt always managed to creep in like this was all a temporary peace that would be gone in an instant.

Taking a breath, he took his phone in his hand and flipped it over a few times. He looked at his reflection in the dark screen, tired eyes staring back at him. The temptation to call Mingi and preoccupy himself was strong after he took off work a few days before and it felt like he had barely seen him since then. With a swipe of his finger he opened his phone and was greeted by the lit up image of his home screen, a picture taken of him and Mingi at the Parlor. He searched for his roommate’s contact and pressed the call button as soon as he spotted it.

There were two and a half rings before there was a click sound as the line connected, _“Hey, San, what’s wrong? Did something happen? Are you okay?”_ Mingi’s deep voice rattled off questions, static breaking into the words every few seconds.

San squeezed the plushie in his hand, “No, no nothing’s wrong, I’m fine. I wanted to check in on you, you know? It feels like I haven’t talked to you in a while and I was thinking I could wait up for you and we can watch an episode of that one show you heard about or maybe a movie if you’re awake enough,” he squeezed his eyes shut and curled in on himself. 

_“Well…,”_ he coughed awkwardly and San braced himself for bad news, _“I’m going to be later than usual tonight-”_

“Every night seems like you’re later than usual,” he muttered, “I miss you.”

 _“You saw me this morning. We ate breakfast together,”_ Mingi reasoned, _“I have to do restock by myself tonight, Jeongin didn’t do it before his shift and Wendy left to have a meeting with the Main Street manager. I’m sorry, I would come home if I could, but I’m the only one here to get this done,”_ he dropped his voice to a whisper, _“You should sleep, I probably won’t be back until two.”_

San felt a burning behind his eyes and he shivered, the room suddenly ice-cold, “I can’t, you know that,” he spoke tentatively, trying to keep himself together, “I-”

A door slammed on the other end of the line, a male voice just barely there, _“Mingi, I don’t know how to refill the utensils.”_

He said he was alone. San’s heart froze and cracked. Mingi was lying to him again.

There was a beat of silence before a series of hushed murmurs followed and Mingi spoke again, _“Look, I’ll try and get done earlier and-”_

“Don’t worry about it,” San cut him off, replying brightly in an attempt to shake off any residing hurt, “Please try not to overwork yourself, okay? I don’t want you to fall asleep behind the wheel.”

Mingi sighed, _“Yeah, okay. I’m really sorry,”_ San knew the apology wasn’t for staying late.

“It’s okay,” his voice wavered, “Bye, Mingi, I’ll be up.”

 _“Bye,”_ the call ended with a beep, leaving San to himself.

The apartment felt lonelier than before. He pushed himself up, back against the arm of the couch and knees pulled to his chest. His phone returned to his contact list, names that San found himself staring blankly at as he contemplated calling someone… _anyone_. Aimlessly, he scrolled through them until he reached the bottom and he found one that stood out among the others. Wooyoung.

He had yet to call, or even message, the boy. It had been almost a week and half since Wooyoung had given San his number and they hadn’t run into each other since then. San was reluctant to reach out to him, not feeling as though a friendship could be reciprocated. Desperation won out as his thumb shakily clicked Wooyoung’s contact and hovered over the call button. His lungs felt tight. Wooyoung should be off work which meant he had a good chance of the boy picking up if he hadn’t already fallen asleep.

Without letting doubt stop him, he held the phone up to his ear and listened to the standard ring… one… two… three, _“Hello, this is Wooyoung’s phone, who is this?”_ A deep voice, unfamiliar to San, answered.

“H-Hi,” he stuttered out, “This is San. I… You’re not Wooyoung,” he said dumbly.

 _“I’m Yeosang, Wooyoung’s- Hey!”_ He interrupted himself with a shout.

There was white noise on the other end of the line, a struggle and a yelp before the sound of a door clicking shut and the rustling of fabric, _“Hello? I’m sorry, who is this?”_ The silver voice asked.

San’s mouth dried, cheeks coloring despite being alone, “Hi, I’m sorry I called so late at night. I didn’t mean to bother you.”

 _“Okay…,”_ Wooyoung hesitated a moment, _“Who am I talking to?”_

He flushed completely, heart dropping, “Oh, right, I shouldn’t expect you to remember me.”

 _“Maybe I could if you gave me your name,”_ the younger boy giggled dreamily, _“I can ask again, if you’d like?”_

He let out a breath of relief, “Sorry. It’s San, from the Jungle Cruise,” a low laugh escaped him, “I’m sorry for taking so long to call you, I know I must have already given you a bad impression of me.”

 _“You say sorry too much,”_ Wooyoung pointed out, _“What made you call me so late, hm?”_

San thought for a moment. He hadn’t truly considered that he would get this far. There had been no real _reason_ to call Wooyoung, at least not one that could be easily explained, and he didn’t think far enough ahead to know exactly what to say. The truth spilled from his lips like a glass overflowing, “I guess… I guess I was lonely.”

_“You don’t have anyone to keep you company?”_

“No,” he swallowed, “My roommate, Mingi, he’s out right now.”

 _“You only have the one?”_ The boy’s voice was quiet, far too intimate for someone who had hardly known him.

“Yeah, he works at the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor on Main, you probably don’t know him,” his speech was uneven, he knew, but words fell from his mouth so easily, “He usually isn’t home until after midnight, but he has to do restock and will probably be done by one or even close to two.”

The boy hummed, _“Both of mine are home since we don’t have to stay after, unless I get stuck cleaning the dressing room or Hongjoong has paperwork and meetings to go to. You know, he’s seemed a little less strict with himself lately and even drank with us the other night.”_

“How is Hongjoong?” He asked, curious, “I haven’t seen him at work all day, I think he had to do some work for management or something. Seonghwa told me he was actually getting worse.”

Hongjoong had been acting strange recently. After the instance of the missing stroller, he had somehow hardly been around while monitoring everything. He seemed to be everywhere and nowhere, which initially gave San the impression that the older had been undergoing more than he had ever been. Seonghwa, though, reassured him after they ran into one another. San had asked if he knew what had been going on with their supervisor, to which Seonghwa explained that Hongjoong had a fainting spell and was likely still on edge.

Wooyoung sighed with a loud huff, _“Really? Maybe… Maybe he’s different when we’re at the park, but at the apartment he seems like he’s doing fine. Do you think he’s hiding something?”_

“No,” San defended speedily, “no, of course not I didn’t mean to-.”

 _“Take a breather, Sannie,”_ the nickname made his heart skip a beat, _“I’m only teasing. What’s got you so jumpy? You’ve sounded scared to talk this whole time, I thought you were the confident type,”_ Wooyoung’s voice was gentle, _“I know we aren’t friends yet by any means, but you can tell me if something’s wrong. Did you call me because of something? Are you okay?”_

He absentmindedly ran his thumb over the plushie next to him, tongue darting out to lick his lips, “I told you… I’m alone.”

It wasn’t a lie. He _was_ alone, that’s why he was behaving so strangely and why he called. There was more to it, though. When he was by himself, San’s thoughts would shout and echo off of the walls so loud he wished he could scream at them to just _be quiet_. The silence of the room was much louder than the most crowded of days at the park.

“I don’t like the quiet, I never have,” he added, not wanting to overshare if it was unwelcomed.

There was the sound of creaking bed springs and shuffling, _“Talk to me, how else are we supposed to get to know each other?”_

San shrank in on himself, wanting to be small, as he pressed tightly against the couch, “I don’t get scared, that’s not it, it’s unsettling to be by yourself in an apartment after being around people all day. I’m just not used to it.”

_“Haven’t you been working at the parks for a while?”_

“Yeah, a couple years or so.”

 _“Then shouldn’t this be familiar to you? The feeling I mean,”_ Wooyoung whispered, voice smooth and dripping with sleep, _“I can’t speak for you, but after such a long time of routine you should know how to… I don’t know… prepare?”_

San did prepare, he tried to at least. The first night he was by himself came unexpectedly, Mingi telling him that he could go home and order some food for them to have together. San didn’t expect the phone call that came in, explaining that he would be at least half an hour late because of some last minute storage issues. He knew it was a lie, he knew every night was a lie. When San went to the parlor on his lunch break one day, he was told by Wendy that his roommate had actually taken off for his own and wouldn’t be back for twenty minutes. He asked her if they would end up hiring another person to help with nightly restock and she had said that they didn’t need to, Mingi would help her out before she left for the night.

Confusion and a strange numbness were all he felt, asking himself how that could be when Mingi stayed after his shift to allegedly do the job he already completed. The first lie was the hardest to recover from. He refused to speak to Mingi about it, just brushing it off as something that wasn’t and shouldn’t be his business. Mingi had his own life outside of San and this apartment and he shouldn’t be expected to be by his side all the time. The reasoning didn’t justify nor prevent the hurt.

“I think it still feels wrong because I don’t know why my roommate isn’t here,” San voiced his thoughts, wavering between words, “What if he doesn’t want to spend time with me anymore?” He squeezed his eyes shut, embarrassed, “I’m sorry, you barely know me and I wanted to make a good impression-”

 _“What did I tell you about apologizing?”_ Wooyoung cut him off, _“It’s like you said: I can handle Hongjoong, I can handle you too. I just wasn’t expecting you to be vulnerable so fast.”_

San laughed dryly, “I’ve been told by Hongjoong I wear my heart on my sleeve, I guess he’s right. Still, I shouldn’t have called you.”

He had the opportunity to think this through, to keep this lighthearted. There was something about Wooyoung that practically melted his defenses and convinced him to trust blindly. The younger boy saw him in his element, at what could be considered the prime of his every day performance.

 _“I’m glad you did,”_ he pressed, _“You don’t need to be alone.”_

“It’s what I'm used to,” he began, “When I’m with other people it helps, kind of like a distraction. I feel shallow, like there is so much of me that doesn’t get shown and even in the few minutes we met you only saw that. Hongjoong and Mingi were the only people I had for the longest time and now they’re slipping away. Hongjoong hasn’t been himself in months, you know? He barely has the time to breathe and it’s like the pressure is changing him so fast, I can’t keep up. I want to help him, like he helped me, but I don’t think he trusts me,” he rambled, lungs feeling as though they were being crushed, “Mingi doesn’t trust me, either, not enough to tell me what he does every night when he isn’t here.”

There was a long pause, a silence that stretched so far that San feared Wooyoung had hung up and he hadn’t noticed. A near imperceptible, sympathetic sigh, that could have been mistaken for interference, broke the quiet, _“Do you think that’s why you don’t like to be alone? You don’t feel trusted, so you don’t trust yourself.”_

San felt the world stand still around him. The realization crashing into him like a brick to his chest, knocking the air from his lungs, “What? I mean- you’re…,” he couldn’t finish, thoughts messily running into one another as he attempted to lace them together to form a cohesive sentence, “How do you know that?”

 _“I know what it’s like to be on your own with stuff,”_ a suppressed yawn making itself known in his words, _“You can’t be comfortable with someone you don’t trust, even when that someone is yourself.”_

San blinked away the welling up emotions that always tried to grow bigger than his own body.

A roaring river, plagued by currents, separated San from most people. Only twice had he found a way to safely reach an island with another lone soul that he allowed himself to be close to. Without knowing it, he was carried back by the ebbs and flows of his own self-distancing back to isolation. As the force of the small tides grew, he stopped trying to wade into the water and instead chose loneliness as his companion. Until he caught the arm of Wooyoung. The proposal of friendship built a bridge between them, one that San had no qualms in crossing no matter how strong his fear of it breaking beneath his feet had been.


	14. A Little Thought

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mingi had Yunho, no question. With growing feelings and new challenges, he wondered how much longer he would have him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey gang :D it has been an insanely busy month on my end and I'm so sorry for taking so long. I'm also sorry for the chaotic mess this chapter is but, hey, we get a ton of cameos, awkward tension, heavy dialogue, and a great surprise at the end ! (I'm sorry in advance)
> 
> p.s.  
> I have not and will not give up on this fic and I really hope you all stick around to see it end :)

**Song Mingi**

**Position: Plaza Ice Cream Parlor Employee, Magic Kingdom Park**

Mingi groaned, pushing himself up onto the counter and leaning back on his hands to stare at the white painted ceiling. He blinked the bleariness from his eyes and shook his head to wake himself up. It had been a long day, Mark wasn’t there for his morning shift so he had to come in early and fill in. The shop had one of it’s busier days, there was hardly ever a time when there wasn’t a line leading out the door. More of his coworkers chose to stay, most of them being friends and sympathizing enough to offer a helping hand. Even Joy got roped in after Wendy whined about being the only girl and needing someone to help wipe down the tables after the fireworks show. Mingi knew how messy the tourists could get that late, too lazy to even take their cups to the trash after a long day at the park.

He kicked his feet from where he sat, eyes shifting to lock on Wendy who kicked her foot at a cardboard box that refused to budge. The sound of Jeongin’s humming filled a tired silence, the lot of them feeling much too exhausted to talk and work at the same time. Joy propped herself up on her elbows next to him, fingers tapping against the cool surface of the granite. Her hair was a mess, falling out of the elastic band she tied it up with hours ago. Her face, though appearing untouched, was covered with a thin sheen of sweat that they all grew used to. Jeongin stood up from where he was bent over restocking cups to put his hands on his back, leaning as far back as he could without falling in an attempt to stretch it. His eyes were tired, hat askew where it sat on a messy mop of black hair, downturned lips making him appear far more intimidating than he truly was. Wendy, though, by far fared the worst. She could hardly keep her eyes open, frustration maring her brow as she typed furiously on her phone. Her braided hair had pieces sticking out that curled from the humidity and the stains on her uniform were a stark contrast against the pastel colors.

“What’s wrong, Wen?” Mingi asked, voice slightly hoarse. Silence followed, and he was about to open his mouth to ask again when she sighed and tossed her phone to him. He moved quickly to catch it, almost fumbling as he did so, and turned it in his hands to look at the screen. His eyes scanned the text messages, “Mark is taking off  _ again _ tomorrow?”

Wendy nodded solemnly, “One of us will have to go in early tomorrow to take over,” she rubbed her eyes, “Mingi you’re already scheduled for after lunch, Joy you’re on for opening through lunch, so Jeongin do you think you can handle it? I’ll let you take Saturday off.”

Jeongin let his back slide down the wall from where he stood against it, falling into a sitting position with his legs stretched out in front of him. He took his hat off, placing it next to him, “Yeah, I guess,” he muttered.

Joy turned to face him, “Aw come on, you get to spend quality time with your favorite,” she smiled teasingly, trying to lighten the mood.

He groaned louder in response, earning a pout from her.

“Jeongin, look what you did, you made the baby sad,” Wendy pushed herself up so she sat on the counter beside Joy, leaning against her, “Thank you, though, you’re amazing.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he played with a loose thread on his shirt, “How much restock and cleaning do we have left tonight?”

Wendy played with the ends of Joy’s hair, twisting the strands around her fingers, “Well you already got started on cups, Joy can handle utensils, I’ll do some reorganization in the back and some odd jobs, and Mingi can clean up around here. Sound good?” 

They all nodded together, leaving their places to get started. Joy left to the back with Wendy to grab the boxes while Jeongin stuck to the front, crawling on his hands and knees to the box of cups to start unloading them.

Mingi looked down at his phone, checking the time, it was already half past eleven and Yunho still hadn’t stopped by. The two had been texting a lot recently, Mingi spending his breaks glued to the screen as he sent messages and replied much faster than his pride would allow him to admit. He hadn’t received anything in the last two hours and Mingi was starting to wonder if he scared him off. They hadn’t gone out since that first time and he was getting antsy, curious to see if Yunho would ask him to go to dinner next-

“What are you thinking about?” Jeongin interrupted his thoughts, “I can hear the wheels turning from here.”

“Oh, nothing, just stuff I guess,” he wasn’t sure if he wanted to talk to anyone yet. Sure, Wendy knew of Yunho, and Jeongin knew a security guard would stop by some nights, but he hadn't confessed to anyone other than himself that he liked the boy.

“What kind of stuff?” The younger questioned.

He took out the wipes from beneath the counter, pulling a few out to begin wiping it down, “Boys… I think I’m just being irrational.”

Wendy and Joy popped their heads out, “Boys?” Joy asked.

“Well, one boy in particular, but yeah. I’m just a little worried.”

Wendy smiled, leaning against the doorframe, “Let me guess, Yunho finally asked you out to dinner.”

Mingi’s cheeks burned red, “No!” Jeongin rolled his eyes in amusement at his words, and he glared pointedly at him, “I actually asked him.”

“Is this that security guy that I keep hearing about?” Joy walked a box over to the utensil dispenser, opening it and picking up some spoons, “Wendy mentioned him a few months ago when he first came around.”

“Yeah, that’s him,” Mingi scratched at his neck, “He usually is here by now and I’m kind of scared that he lost interest. I know that’s not true, he’s great and we get along really well and he’s my best friend, but that little voice in my head keeps telling me I annoy him.”

Jeongin nodded in understanding, “I doubt that, I mean, you just took him out to dinner and if he knows you like him he would have told you he doesn’t feel the same by now.”

“That’s the thing, he doesn’t know I like him as more than just a friend. When I offered to buy him dinner I said we could do it as friends and I don’t think he took it as anything more than that. I’ve been texting him every day since then nonstop and it's been really nice. I love talking to him, but around nine tonight he just stopped and I don’t know why. He updates me on where he is a lot without me asking so I tried to leave it alone. Still, he’s always here by now if not earlier.”

“Did you tell him the three of us were still here? Maybe that was what freaked him out,” Wendy offered.

Mingi shook his head, “I didn’t know about you guys staying until we were about to close and that’s after he stopped responding.”

Joy offered him a sympathetic look, “So he doesn’t know how you feel?” Mingi shook his head and she furrowed her brows in concentration, tapping her index fingers together, “You should tell him it makes you nervous when he doesn’t reply without an explanation. By no means do you have to profess your love yet, but you should at least communicate how you feel on a friendship level.”

He laughed dejectedly, “I guess, I just don’t want to freak him out by acting possessive when we aren’t even dating.”

“You’re not possessive for being concerned and having anxiety,” Wendy objected, “Yunho’s a sweet guy, he’ll understand and if he doesn’t then he isn’t worth it. Mingi, you’re one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met and I’m sure he thinks the same.”

Jeongin shrugged, “You’re definitely overthinking it. I don’t know him, but it’s not realistic to think that he’s annoyed by you. Don’t you think he likes you?”

Mingi bit his lip, “I don’t think so, he wouldn’t look at me like that.”

“How do you know?”

He sucked in a breath, halting himself mid-wipe, “You haven’t seen the way he looks at me… It’s like I’m-” 

The door suddenly burst open, the bell above it ringing out loudly as it swung back closed. The four of them whipped around to see who caused the disturbance. Yunho stood hunched over, supporting himself with his hands on his knees. His chest was heaving, breaths coming out harshly as he tried to regain his composure. Mingi’s mouth had fallen open in shock, Wendy, Joy, and Jeongin glancing between the two. Yunho held up a finger, moving to stand up straight. His eyes were glossy; his shoulders were tense. The second he laid eyes on the others he flushed red from his chest to the roots of his hair.

“M-Mingi…,” the way he spoke made his name sound like a question, “What…? Who-?”

“What are you doing here so late?” Mingi asked before he could stop himself. 

Yunho blinked, lips parted as he gathered his thoughts, “I had a meeting with management, I’m sorry I-I got here as fast as I could. I didn’t think you’d still be here. I was afraid you had left,” he crossed his arms over his chest shyly, as though he was intimidated by the four of them.

“We’re doing some clean up and restock…,” Mingi took a step forward, shifting his expression to one a bit warmer, “Wendy already locked up the cases for tonight, but you can stick around to help a little if you have the time,” he offered.

He still looked hesitant, fingers fidgeting with the fabric of his jacket. Mingi’s heart felt the slightest squeeze, realizing he must be anxious with so many new faces when it was usually just the two of them. Yunho had expressed countless times how crowds and unfamiliar people make him uncomfortable after not having the opportunity to socialize as much as he used to. Mingi’s eyes softened as Yunho met them.

“Right, I should probably introduce them,” he gestured for Yunho to come further into the parlor, “So you know Wendy, this is Joy,” he nodded towards the black haired girl who smiled brightly with a small wave, “and that’s Jeongin,” the younger boy held up a peace sign, stance awkward, “You haven’t seen them around this late because they usually have morning shifts.”

“Oh,” the tension in his shoulders ebbed away slowly, “I’m Yunho,” he lowered his eyes to the ground.

“We’ve heard,” Joy grinned.

The older’s face flushed, “Really?” He looked to Mingi in question.

“They’re the first one’s I told,” he supplied, not wanting him to think he started sharing their secret, “I mentioned you just before you got here.”

The bell above the door rang out again, everyone turning to look at the next unexpected guest. A man, shorter than even Jeongin, popped his head in, his eyes were wide with surprise. An array of freckles decorated his nose and cheeks and his dark brown hair was tossed messily. He wore a uniform Mingi recognized as the one custodians wore, crisp white that contrasted his tan skin. His eyes scanned the room, landing on the youngest boy who stood near the counter. 

“Hi…,” his voice was deep, only lightened by the faint shock laced into it, “I’m just here for Jeongin,” he pointed to the boy, “Hyunjin is waiting in the car for us and he said he isn’t going to sit there forever.”

Jeongin groaned, “ _ But Felix, _ ” he whined, sounding like a child who got told their play-date is over, “I still have so much to get done here, can’t he just come back and get me in an hour?”

Joy and Wendy glanced at each other, somehow agreeing telepathically to keep working. The former continued to unload utensils while the latter picked up Mingi’s discarded rag and began finishing his job for him. Mingi slid to Yunho’s side, pressing their shoulders together as they observed the interaction.

“It’s either now or the bus,” the boy, Felix, answered, pushing the door open a little more, “Are you coming?” Jeongin sighed, about to shake his head when Wendy cut him off, “Go ahead, you’re already covering for Mark tomorrow morning and if Yunho sticks around we can get it done pretty soon.”

“Are you sure?”

She nodded, “Don’t worry about it, we can take it from here. Tell Hyunjin I said hi,” she smiled reassuringly.

“Me too!” Joy added, “And remind him that he still owes me for when I covered him for the ice cream he got last week.”

Jeongin collected his cap and bag from where they were on the floor, “I will. Thanks Wen, I’ll see you all tomorrow,” he waved goodbye, following Felix out the door the two of them disappearing into the darkness of the abandoned park.

“I’ll tell you what,” Wendy spoke as soon as the door closed, “You two can head to the back and reorganize the freezer while Joy and I finish up out here. I need to stay a little later tonight to meet with Irene anyway and once you two get done I can send you all off.”

Mingi nudged the older with his shoulder, turning to realize their faces were only inches apart, he swallowed, “Are you okay with that?”

Yunho had a habit of not truly showing how he felt, his eyes being the only tell that Mingi has been able to detect. While he was intimidated and often scared at times to meet them, it was why he tried to do so as much as he could. The older blinked a few times, shifting his gaze between the exit and the younger. He was hesitant, likely worried about being scolded by management for staying longer than he needed to. Mingi pressed against him, an attempt to gain back the taller boy’s focus.

“Yeah, that should be fine, I can just say I came to walk you out.”

Mingi wrapped his hand around his wrist, “Okay, follow me,” the second they were out of view from the girls, he heard Yunho let out a breath he seemed to have been holding since he first arrived. He took the keys from around his belt and opened the freezer door, pushing it open and feeling a blast of cold air against his face.

“I’m sorry,” Yunho’s voice came out shy, he watched as Mingi began to take the new shipment and unloading the flavors onto their respective shelves. He followed suit, copying his movements.

“What for?”

“I didn’t tell you I was going to be late.”

He slid the tubs of ice cream to the back, using the action as a distraction from the tension in the frigid air, “I’m not hurt or anything, I was just worried about you. You usually let me know about this sort of thing and since it was a meeting with your manager you had to have known at least a week ago.”

“I was just… I was scared…,” Yunho spoke like he was  _ more  _ than scared, as though he held a secret inside that was clawing to get out of him.

“What’s wrong? Did something happen? Did your boss say something to you?” Mingi turned to look at him only to be greeted with Yunho’s back as he faced the shelves unmoving, “Yunho?”

His shoulders shook slightly and Mingi could hear his breath stutter with an inhale, “Mingi?” His voice broke on the last syllable, slicing through the air like a knife.

He rushed to his side, placing a hand on Yunho’s back as he guided the boy’s face to look at him. His expression was painful, his eyebrows drawn together and eyes clearly distressed with his lips parted as though he desperately wanted to speak, but couldn’t find the words. Mingi had never seen him look so hurt, “What happened?”

“I got a call about a week ago that I was going to have a meeting about my position here,” he started, unsteady, “I thought it was going to be one of those mandatory reviews they have to do once in a while. When I told JK and Yeri about it they both said they never got a notice, so I assumed it must be about how I spend some of my shift here. I figured I’d get told off and that would be it, I’ve been working here for so long I didn’t think…”

“You didn’t think what? What did your boss say?” Mingi was growing restless, mind racing with every horrible outcome there could possibly be.

Yunho looked down at his feet, biting his lip, “They said that if they need to downsize that I’d be the first to go.”

The words hit Mingi like bricks, knocking into his chest and stealing the air from his lungs, “What do you mean ‘first to go’?” He desperately hoped what he was saying wasn’t true.

“I would leave Magic Kingdom,” he breathed ruggedly like he was actively trying to control it, the weight on his shoulders growing heavier, “I wouldn’t be kicked from the company, probably just transferred. He said they had openings at Epcot, that it’d be easy to go back there since I was considered a valuable employee before,” he froze under Mingi’s touch, “I haven’t told Seonghwa,” his reserve cracked, crumbling down as he reached forward and latched himself onto Mingi.

The younger hushed him, whispers of assurances that  _ it was going to be okay _ falling from his lips, “He’ll understand, we can figure this out,” Mingi may not know the full extent of Yunho and Seonghwa’s friendship, but he was sure he held Seonghwa close to him with the same value Mingi held for San. He closed his arms tightly around him.

“I don’t want to go back, I don’t want to be alone again. I  _ can’t _ , I already have been for so long. I had Seonghwa, then you… who will I have if I leave?”

It took every ounce of self-control Mingi had not to let his voice waver, “You won’t be leaving and you won’t be alone,” his words were quiet, meant only for Yunho’s ears, “You won’t be leaving me,” Mingi wasn’t didn’t know if his promises were to Yunho or himself.


	15. Stay Awake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wooyoung was used to heartache, he was used to the silent nights that followed desire. Now, though, he found someone who listened to him fill the quiet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello angels !! Today I offer you deep moments, heavy descriptions, and subtle messages. This chapter is honestly one of my favorites and I really took my time with it so I hope you enjoy :)
> 
> p.s.  
> yes, I am in love with Wooyoung AND San. Also, makes sure to pay close attention and read between the lines whenever the other boys make an appearance.

**Jung Wooyoung**

**Position: Street Performer, Magic Kingdom**

Wooyoung felt his heart pounding against his ribs, his breath borderline labored as he tried to compose himself. The sky was dark, the only light being the street lamps and rides themselves as he and his cast mates exited the main park; they passed through the gate to a secret path that looped back around to the underground tunnels. He swallowed dryly, desperately wanting to be drenched in cold water. Even though the sun had set, the air was painfully still and humid. He felt the weight on his shoulders grow heavier with every step, exhaustion a ball and chain attached to every limb. His eyes followed those in front of him, Lisa and Hoseok talking excitedly about their performance and praising one another. Meanwhile he and Jimin walked next to each other in comfortable silence, lacking the energy to speak.

He scratched his neck and groaned at the itchiness he felt beneath his costume. His group slowly entered the tunnels, dividing off into pairs or small groups to enter dressing rooms. Wooyoung tapped Jimin, gesturing towards the door he often retreated to alone. The other nodded in understanding and waved the boy off, his way of bidding him goodnight. The second he entered the messy dressing room, he closed the door and leaned his back against it. He pressed the back of his hand against his cheek, heat practically radiating from his skin.

Wooyoung closed his eyes, pushing himself back up to grab his bag and change. He sat down in front of the makeup mirror and began to take off his clothes, starting with his shoes and working his way up. He did his best to fold from his position, his feet hurt too much to stand and do it neatly. With a sigh he yanked his sweatpants on, bouncing on the chair a little to get them all the way up. As he was taking off his shirt he heard his phone buzz in the largest pocket of his bag. He rummaged through it, shoving aside his belongings to find his phone.

One glance and he groaned, the screen filled with messages. The first being from Hongjoong, telling him he did well in the parade and that they would meet at the exit as per usual. The next few were from Yeosang, varying in capitalization and enthusiasm, most of them being from throughout the evening that Wooyoung hadn’t bothered to answer. Then there were endless notifications from other apps he didn’t have the energy to go through at the moment. After only responding to Hongjoong, he was about to pocket the device when one last buzz interrupted him.

He looked back down, San’s name popping up with a bit of a longer message. Wooyoung pressed his lips together, rubbing at his bare shoulders as he considered if he should respond immediately or if it would seem too needy, “Whatever,” he mumbled to himself. His lips moved noiselessly as he read over the text: “ _ hey, sorry if this is weird but, I managed to sneak away from the cruise long enough to watch the start of the parade and I just wanted to tell you I thought you did great :) _ ”

His heart skipped at the praise, his face breaking into a smile. With a moment of pause to finish putting on a shirt, he bounced his leg as he tried to come up with an appropriate reply. He collected his things, placing his uniform in the cubby he assigned to himself.

Wooyoung’s previously tired mind was now racing, one thought leading to the next faster than he could keep up with. He couldn’t decide how he wanted to respond to the boy. Should he be sincere? Maybe try to make a joke? Would flirting be too risky? He could always keep it friendly, that was a safe option, but how far would that get him?

Hongjoong met him at the tunnel exit, looking exhausted and barely awake himself. The older stood with his shoulders slumped, head tilted back as if he was struggling to keep it up any longer. His clothes were disheveled, as they usually were at the end of a long day. Wooyoung knew things were getting increasingly stressful as the seasonal meeting for the managers was approaching. He didn’t know much about the meetings Hongjoong had, most of it being confidential, but he always shared how the others were doing and what he was tasked with in the next quarter. Jimin had mentioned things growing tense around the park. He was close with a lot of employees that weren’t exclusively performers, mentioning that cuts were being made to night staff and a lot of higher ups were facing backlash for leadership. Hongjoong was likely not exempt from that.

The boy sighed to himself, elbowing Hongjoong and gesturing for him to follow. He blinked blearily, eyes half-lidded as he dragged his feet next to him, “How was the rest of your performance tonight? Any mishaps with Yiren this time?”

“It went fine. She’s always great, you know? I never have any complaints about her. What about you? Did anything interesting happen today?”

Hongjoong shrugged, “Aladdin had a lot of issues when I first got here, so I’ve had a headache since then. Jin complained that two of his greeters didn’t show up and I have to file a formal complaint tomorrow. I shouldn’t be surprised, it isn’t the first time they took off.”

“College program?” Wooyoung inquired.

“Yeah, they’ll likely end up getting fired which means I have to help with the interview process. I can’t imagine I won’t be criticized for it at the meeting next week.”

He nodded in understanding, “Did you talk to San today?” His attempt at subtlety failed miserably as the shorter man rolled his eyes at his question.

“Not much, but yeah, he found me on his break to go over some things. He actually asked about you, too, he mentioned wishing he could see the parade and find you. Obviously, he can’t do that.”

Wooyoung looked down, hiding his smile from Hongjoong, “How about Seonghwa?”

He visibly tensed, Wooyoung raised an eyebrow at the strange reaction, “He-... He’s been fine. I haven’t spoken or seen him in a few days, I assume he’s been doing his job.”

“I know you hate to hear it, but I think he means well. San told me about how he just wants to have more responsibility. Why don’t you give it to him? Maybe he’ll actually turn out to be more helpful than you think.”

Hongjoong shook his head, not bothering to respond. They walked in silence down Main Street as they made their way to the exit. His phone buzzed in his pocket, a reminder that he had yet to reply to San. He typed in his password, shooting a quick text to Yeosang after the older told him he was waiting in the car already and going back to the chat between him and San. After a few minutes of typing and deleting, indecisiveness winning out almost every time, he chose to be simple and say “ _ thank you, glad you liked it :) _ ”

The ride home was uneventful, silence enveloping the car as Yeosang drove and Hongjoong scrolled thoughtlessly through his notifications, Wooyoung seeing him remove a few out of the corner of his eye as he stared out the window. He huffed out a breath, limbs feeling heavy and mind sluggish by the time Yeosang pulled into their apartment complex and parked. The three boys trudged up two flights of stairs to the third floor, Hongjoong wasting no time in unlocking the door and shuffling inside.

The time was nearing half past midnight, the entire apartment was dark and cold compared to the heat of the outside air. Yeosang told them he was headed to take a shower, the other two nodding as they split off into their own rooms.

Their apartment was decently sized. They had a small kitchen and living room space, three bedrooms, and a bathroom they shared with one another. While the space outside of their own rooms was small, the privacy was worth it. He flopped onto his bed, stretching out his sore muscles and melting onto the surface of the comforter. His eyes slipped shut, his breathing evening out as he felt like he could finally relax.

Ever since Wooyoung was in high school, he felt the need to maintain some sort of image. It wasn’t that he was faking anything, his parents had taught him better than that, but he knew that being open about personal matters shouldn’t be done on a whim. As a teenager, he wasn’t exactly the most put-together. He was, and still is, very emotionally driven and it would often get him into trouble or leave the wrong impression. Wooyoung was told many times before that he gets himself into bad situations because his fatal flaw was his own feelings. Needless to say, it wasn’t uncommon to see him attached to the side of a different boy every few weeks.

He wasn’t a player, not by any means, he just got caught up in an endless cycle of loving and heartbreak. His teen years were spent in the backseats of cars and on basement couches: same heat, same pounding heart, different person. After years of sleeping around, he developed a reputation. Wooyoung wasn’t hated or cast out, not even given dirty looks. What he did get were nights of pleasure that ended with tears by the time the sun rose the next morning.

When he would fall for a guy he always plunged headfirst. Unable to control his desire for the life of him, all he needed was a bit of coaxing to have him eager for some show of intimacy. Every time a boy finished, though, they would be gone faster than they came. Words were thrown at him before, of course, some harsher than others.

Wooyoung thought of one boy in particular he had on and off hookups with for a few months in his first year of college. He had been the first to tell Wooyoung that boys didn’t care what he felt or thought, that his problems meant nothing when rivaled by how badly his one night stands wanted him. The words stung. He still hears them when he looks at any guy he doesn’t already trust.

He traced patterns into the soft fabric of his blanket, lost in the memories. His track record with love hasn’t been great to say the least. He figured a large part of his own insecurity was rooted in the things he experienced far too young to be considered normal. When he had first met Yeosang, the older would ask him why he always seemed to listen to problems rather than talk about his own. The younger would shrug it off, saying they weren’t big enough issues to need to be talked about. Ever since he was told his problems couldn’t compare to others’, he hasn’t bothered venting about them.

His buzzing phone, once again interrupted his train of thought. Opening his eyes groggily, he reached over to grab it only to see San’s name pop up on the screen with a short message: “ _ I know it’s late but can I call you? _ ”

Wooyoung licked his lips, shifting on his bed slightly so he could roll comfortably onto his back. He paused before he hit send, hesitant. With a deep breath he pressed the button and in seconds his phone was ringing. He accepted and the line clicked.

_ “Wooyoung, hey, I’m sorry it’s so late.” _

“Don’t worry about it,” his voice was hoarse, he cleared his throat before he continued, “What’s up?”

_ “It’s lonely here again. Mingi has been taking even later nights and started getting home closer to two earlier this week. I wanted someone to talk to and since you’ve been so nice about it every time I’ve called…,”  _ his voice trailed off, tone uneasy with worry seeping into his words.

Wooyoung pursed his lips, “I understand, your calls help me too.”

San laughed dryly,  _ “Yeah, but you have Hongjoong and Yeosang to keep you company.” _

“Keep me company?” Even though the other couldn’t see him, he rolled his eyes, “Please, Hongjoong never wants to spend time with me because he's always too tired or too stressed and Yeosang can’t go a full minute without mentioning this guy he’s been talking to.”

_ “You’re right, my apologies,”  _ he teased,  _ “Hongjoong has been acting strange though lately.” _

Wooyoung hummed in agreement, “I know, right? I’m still worried about him, but his behavior has changed. It’s like he’s less angry and more jumpy, I’ve never seen him like this before.”

_ “Neither have I… Has he mentioned anything to you? Something he might be stressing about?” _ San asked. There was some rustling on his end, loud, like he had put the phone on speaker. 

“He has that quarter meeting next week. Every few months he gets irritable, but I’ve never seen him acting anxious to this extent. Usually he’ll just keep it all bottled up until he explodes and has a breakdown in the apartment,” he laughed lightly, not wanting to sound too serious, “I end up helping him through the night and the next day he’s back to normal. Lately, though, his mood swings have gotten out of hand. You remember the first time you called and mentioned being concerned? I’m starting to see where you’re coming from. One second he’s happy, the next he’s angry, then he looks on the verge of having an anxiety attack. I know from personal experience that behavior like that isn’t something to take lightly,” he stopped himself from speaking further, mentally slapping himself for going on for so long, “Sorry, I know that was an ear full.”

San was quiet for a few seconds,  _ “No, don’t be, I know what you’re talking about. I tried to ask Jin and Seonghwa if they’ve heard anything. Jin brushed it off and said he was probably just sick of the slacking program kids, but Seonghwa said he had no idea Hongjoong has been acting like this. He said Hongjoong had been avoiding him like the plague since the incident with the spilled coffee.” _

Wooyoung couldn’t hold back his giggle, “They came down to my dressing room together to get a new shirt after that, they both looked wrecked.”

_ “I know he’ll never mention it, but I think part of him knows Seonghwa is right. He puts so much pressure on himself he can’t even think to believe it’s true.” _

“Yeah…,” he took a deep inhale, “Anyway, what are you doing right now?”

The sound of shifting fabric and a creak was heard,  _ “Laying on the couch, there’s some movie playing on the TV, but I couldn’t tell you anything about what’s going on ‘cause I ended up muting it a while ago. I’m too tired to focus on more than one thing right now.” _

“Why don’t you try and sleep?”

_ “I can’t, I never can when Mingi isn’t here,”  _ his slurring speech was a dead give away that he was fighting to stay awake. While San was telling the truth, Wooyoung had talked to him enough to know that much, he knew the boy realistically  _ could  _ sleep even if it was his own anxiety keeping him up.

Wooyoung hummed softly, “Well, I’ll stay up with you as long as I can keep my eyes open,” he had to admit, his heart fluttered when he heard San’s sleepy chuckle through the phone.

_ “I like hearing you talk, keep telling me stuff.” _

“What kind of stuff do you want to hear?” His voice was low, the pitch he knew struck a sweet spot with the boys he talked to.

San’s breathing was even through the phone,  _ “Anything, tell me a story about your day or something interesting.” _

“Today was pretty uneventful if I’m honest…,” he thought for a moment, “I guess I can tell you a story, though,” he moved so he could lay his head on his pillow, holding the phone to his ear as he stared up at the  ceiling , “So, back when Yeosang and I had just met and we were working at Downtown-”

_ “You worked Downtown? Where?”  _ San sounded eager, a tone Wooyoung rarely heard from those who talked to him.

He let a grin tug at his lips, “Yeah, I actually worked at the Rainforest Cafe as a greeter, then as a waiter for a while. Anyway, we were both in college and I was applying for a performer position at Hollywood Studios.”

San swallowed on the other end of the line,  _ “Isn’t that really hard to get into?” _

“Only if you don’t have a degree or if you’re going for a character spot in Fantasmic,” he answered, “I ended up getting chosen and they gave me a callback audition for the Beauty and the Beast, I was so excited. Yeosang and I got hammered that night in celebration,” he picked at a thread on the waistband of his sweatpants, “That’s when he started crying and telling me he tried to get a job at the Tower of Terror, but they were overstocked on cast members as is and every other position fell through. He said he wanted to follow me there and stay best friends. I don’t remember much else because we were shitfaced, but the next day I got a callback from Magic Kingdom. I knew it wasn’t a coincidence. I kept it a secret and told Yeosang to find a job there, telling him I could always visit and we could even go apartment hunting before we graduated so we had a place to move into together. So, he ended up getting accepted as an employee at the Haunted Mansion and a few weeks later I got my acceptance notice that I secured a position as a performer,” his tone grew soft at the memory, “His face could have lit up the night sky when I told him, he was so happy to be transferring with me. I promised him I would follow him no matter what offers I got from the other parks. It’s kind of cheesy, but he’s my best friend and I would reject Hollywood Studios a thousand times if it meant I got to stay with him.”

Wooyoung stopped his story, listening for San’s reply, but he was greeted with soft snores and evenly measured breaths.

“Sannie?” He questioned quietly.

There was no response, only the sound of stable inhales of breath and huffed exhales with the occasional sleepy sniff or whine. A blush grew on Wooyoung’s cheeks, heat spreading from the roots of his hair to his chest. San had fallen asleep, he actually put the boy to bed. He had said he was too scared to sleep alone, but then how did he…? 

Wooyoung turned onto his side, blinking at the darkness. His heart beat felt heavy and slow, like the pounding of a drum that he could feel through his entire body, “Goodnight, Sannie, sleep well.”


	16. A Whole New World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jongho grew up knowing he was wrong, knowing he had to do what he had to do in order to be accepted and successful. Still, he longed for that person to light him up and to give him that freedom he has wanted for years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heyyyy how y'all doin' 0_0 look i KNOW it's been a while, but the end of 2020 decided to give it to me good. on top of the insane writer's block i have had, a lot of stuff happened in my personal life that i'll spare you the horrible details of. anyway, i hope this chapter makes up for what i haven't been able to post (at least in some capacity). as always, stay safe and you are loved <3
> 
> p.s. if you fall in love with yeosang, don't worry, i did too

**Choi Jongho**

**Position: Tech Maintenance, Magic Kingdom Park**

Jongho turned his phone around in his hands, nerves rendering him unable to stand still as he leaned against the top floor’s railing. He kept his eyes locked on the double doors on the first floor, waiting. His skin was hot under his black button down, the tie around his neck not making it any easier to breathe. He twisted the ring on his index finger with his thumb.

The restaurant was packed, tourists and other patrons scattered around the waiting area. The actual dining room was even worse. Ohana’s had been his pick after he had to cancel last Saturday. Yeosang had asked him to go out last week at Raglan, but he was called in for a meeting after work with the possibility of a promotion the day of their supposed date. He felt terrible, having to call Yeosang and explain his sudden need to cancel. The older was more understanding than Jongho could have hoped for, telling him to take his time and they could reschedule. He couldn’t help but be scared, though, this being in the small collection of his first dates. Jongho couldn’t mess up.

In high school, Jongho lived in a  _ really  _ small town. Not small enough that his classes were small, but the actual town itself was limited and the most entertainment you could get was a mall forty minutes away. He wasn’t exactly unpopular, he had friends, did well in school, played sports, and didn’t get into trouble. There was a degree of unfamiliarity to him, since he blended in so well he was hardly recognized as being different. When he noticed he liked… when he noticed he actually _ wasn’t  _ like his peers, he made himself as unnoticeable as possible. So, he didn’t come out in high school. He told his parents over lunch after a few months of living at his college dorm and told a handful of friends he managed to get after leaving behind everyone from his earlier teen years. 

After securing an internship, and eventually an official position, he managed to find Seonghwa and Yunho. They were kind and the first people Jongho had met that didn’t have to be told he didn’t like girls. The older boys themselves weren’t exactly straight either and he finally felt like he could breathe, unafraid to be himself around them. Working at the park opened up a whole new world to him, there wasn’t a reason to hide among so many people just like him. Even his favorite coworker, Changbin, talked about guys he hooked up with like it was nothing. Still, he had only been on two dates in his lifetime. One was a girl in his senior year of high school and the other was a guy his friend hooked him up with that left halfway through because Jongho didn’t want to sleep with him.

He had crushes before, but his actual experience with boys was limited because of where he lived and his circumstances post-college. Between work and his distinctly inactive social life beyond the people he saw everyday he hadn't found the right time nor the right person to start seeing. He’d only been kissed a few times before, never going beyond that, which only made the crushing feeling of anxiety in his chest grow heavier.

Yeosang was easy, though. The older boy was easy to talk to and Jongho felt himself catching feelings far too fast for his own liking. He was wary, scared that as soon as his somewhat-cool facade dropped Yeosang would walk away. There was something about the boy that Jongho was drawn to. He was stable, comfortable, someone he didn’t need to put effort in for but someone he  _ wanted  _ to put in effort for. That’s why they were at one of the nicest dining places in all of Disney World. It was formal and entirely too expensive, but worth it to impress a guy like Yeosang. Jongho wasn’t afraid of spending too much money, he was scared of doing too much and overwhelming his date.

Jongho shook his head, sighing to himself. He stared down at the lobby and observed the guests walking between the tiny stores and reception desks. The atmosphere was warm, the orange light and smell of food filling the building. The double doors opened and Jongho’s eyes immediately found Yeosang strolling in. He looked good, better than good, he looked perfect. His brown hair was parted to the side and styled to look put-together yet casual. He wore a white button down with the sleeves rolled up and the top two buttons undone, exposing his collarbones and showcasing a delicate chain with a charm Jongho couldn’t make out from this height. His black pants hung low on his hips, the fit of them making his legs seem long and his stance elegant.

The older searched the lobby before glancing up and spotting Jongho standing at the railing above him. He smiled, a delicate and quiet smile. Jongho returned it as Yeosang made his way to the stairs to meet him. He turned to where the staircase met the second floor and straightened himself, brushing his hands down his front. The moment he saw the boy he went to his side.

“Hey, you made it,” he started, a grateful smile turning the corners of his lips upward, “Thank you for letting me reschedule, I’m so sorry I had to cancel last time.”

“Don’t worry about it, you’re already treating me to tonight and at a place like this no less. If I’m honest, I was planning Rainforest Cafe for our first date so clearly I know to make you pick where we go in the future,” Yeosang’s expression was fond, his hand coming to rest against Jongho’s bicep. 

His heart skipped a beat, Yeosang said  _ future _ , “Rainforest Cafe is just as good as this place,” he teased.

“Don’t lie to me, you don’t need to get on my good side when you’re already there. Now come on, let’s get a table.”

Jongho offered his arm to Yeosang, the older boy glancing from it to his eyes then back. He smiled softly, putting his hand through it as Jongho led him to the short line just outside of the dining room. The music was drowned out by the series of conversations all happening at once, the clanging of utensils against plates crowding his ears. The weight of Yeosang’s arm kept him grounded, even with his heart pounding in his chest from their close proximity. 

Eventually, they finally got to the front and he told the host the name their reservation was under and they were led through the darkened restaurant to the spot Jongho had specifically picked. It was a small, rounded table directly next to the window where they could have a clear view of the Magic Kingdom castle. Though it was dark, the lights of the park had gone up and it was still very much alive with tourists. He knew he had to impress Yeosang, and his way of ensuring that was giving him the best view.

Jongho had the money, not only were his parents well off but his income wouldn’t dent too much from a nice dinner out. When he had decided on Ohana’s, there was one thing he wanted to make sure they’d get to see: the fireworks. He’d planned this whole night out down to the details. The fireworks would be timed exactly for when he predicted they would be getting their dessert. That would be his opportunity to make a move. He didn’t know if there were rules to dating, especially on the first date, and when he had asked Changbin he had told him that he always ends his first dates with a kiss. Granted, Changbin wasn’t exactly reliable considering his “romantic life” is mostly one night stands, but he refused to ask Seonghwa or Yunho. Seonghwa would force him to tell him everything about Yeosang and Yunho’s been too distracted recently to even spend five minutes with him. So, he was left with Changbin’s advice and he hoped it would work.

Their seats were perfect, exactly where he wanted. He smiled.

“What’s that face for?” Yeosang asked, an eyebrow slightly raised in amused curiosity.

He shook his head, “Nothing. I’m just happy that we finally managed to have a date, that’s all.”

The waiter left them, letting the pair have a few minutes to decide on drinks. Jongho pulled out Yeosang’s chair for him, remembering what his father told him to do with anyone he took out. The other grinned at him, eyes light, “Thank you, I’ve actually never had someone do that for me on a date before.”

Jongho checked off a box in his head, taking a mental note to do that in the future. If they  _ had  _ a future, that inner voice taunted him. He moved to sit down in his own seat, glancing out the window over towards the Magic Kingdom, “So, what did you have to do to get off tonight? I can’t imagine it was easy, you had to use one of your vacation days right?”

“No, actually,” Yeosang picked up a menu, glancing over it as he spoke, “I’m only missing, what, two hours of work? Maybe three? I just told Rosé that I had an emergency, she’s still pretty bummed about Jisoo leaving so she was okay with it. She’s never been too strict, anyway. I’m pretty sure she’s letting Han and Mina take over for me.”

“And Han’s the short one, right? With the black hair?” Jongho remembered him from when he had to go down and fix some things in the lighting booth.

He nodded, “I don’t know if I trust him to run things smoothly… but he has a lot of character and with Mina there to help control him I think it’ll be fine.”

“I get it, I’m kind of worried about Changbin having to take over some of my areas. Especially since the Mansion and Adventureland has been having a ton of technical issues. I think the more tourists we have, the more rides start to break down.”

Yeosang laughed softly. His lips pulled back to reveal a pair of sharp canines, they gave the impression of tiny fangs and Jongho’s heart stuttered seeing them. The small detail wasn’t something anyone else would pay any mind to, but for some reason they stood out to him. They were cute, and it felt almost special to see them. Like Yeosang’s smile was something precious.

The waiter came over and took their orders for their drinks, Jongho adding in to bring them an appetizer of dumplings with noodles. Yeosang looked at him gratefully while the waiter took their menus away and went to gather their order. Every time he looked over at the older he was hit with that suffocating feeling. It wasn’t unpleasant, or uncomfortable. It was overwhelming, and stirred an unfamiliar feeling in his chest. Jongho hadn’t liked many guys before, none of them seemed well suited enough for him. He didn’t want someone too much like himself, he needed a balance, but he also wanted someone that was just different enough to light something up in him. Living as someone he wasn’t for so many years of his youth he needed someone to bring those new experiences without scaring him off. Yeosang seemed like a good fit to be that person.

Jongho shook the thoughts from his head, trying to gather himself. They made light conversation for a few moments, going over their days and what their next few weeks looked like. Yeosang talked with this natural air around him, and it felt like something he wasn’t worthy of being around. It was wrong, but it felt good. Jongho’s stomach churned, he swallowed his mixed feelings down with a sip of water.

“How has Seonghwa been?” Yeosang continued the flow of the conversation easily, and Jongho envied his calmness.

“He’s been okay, I think. He seems happier, but a little skittish recently like he’s been drinking too much coffee. I’m going to be honest, I don’t always ask what’s wrong because he plays that game of saying ‘nothing’ and doesn’t tell me what’s actually making him act the way he does.”

“Hongjoong is the exact same way, but he says it to convince himself he’s fine. They’ve both been weird. I know Hongjoong has a big meeting tomorrow, though, so maybe he can relax after that and finally breathe for once. It’s like he never stops. Wooyoung says he needs to get laid, but I think he needs therapy,” Yeosang laughed, smiling to himself as if he were thinking of some memory.

“Don’t we all. We work at Disney World. I think we could use a session or two.”

Yeosang ran a hand through his hair, “I know. Everyday gets kind of monotonous when you’re just stuck ushering people on and off of a ride and trying to keep things running smoothly. You don’t have to worry about that, do you? You get to go all over the park whenever you have a call for a repair.”

Jongho fiddled with his ring, twisting the silver jewelry around his finger as he thought of an answer, “I mean, it’s repetitive to have to keep fixing ride after ride. My breaks are longer, I guess, but sometimes they get interrupted whenever Jennie needs to send me somewhere else. I didn’t really want to go into mechanics when I was younger, so it’s kind of just how I’m living.”

The older’s eyebrows furrowed, “What did you really want to do?”

He pursed his lips, biting down on his bottom lip slightly, “I wanted to sing when I was in high school, but I wasn’t passionate enough. Plus, my parents really wanted me to do something more practical and I’ve always excelled in things like math and shop. It was common sense, you know?”

Yeosang continued to look at him sympathetically, “Yeah, I do. I would like to hear you sing sometime.”

Jongho flushed red, “Oh… m-maybe,” he stumbled over his words, silently hoping the restaurant was dark enough to hide his blushing cheeks.

The meal passed slowly, the pair enjoying their conversations and lulls of silence. Yeosang only got prettier with every second and a rock sat in Jongho’s stomach watching him, watching his lips. They were perfect: they were smooth and looked soft. There was a soft indication of a cupid’s bow that seemed to disappear when he smiled. Jongho understood why Changbin said he kisses on the first date. He wanted to kiss his heaven-made lips.

Suddenly it was time for dessert and Jongho’s heart was pounding. The fireworks were supposed to start any minute, and if he timed this wrong he would ruin it. He had to make sure everything went perfectly.

As soon as Jongho saw a distant sparkle in the corner of his eye he whipped his head to the window. A series of multicolored fireworks fizzled in the air. His mouth went dry and he glanced at Yeosang to see his reaction. The older was looking on in wonder, mouth slightly hung open and eyes reflecting the blue and purple lights like small stars.

“I’ve never had a view like this before… it looks beautiful from here. Did you plan this?” His eyes met Jongho’s and they danced with something he hadn’t seen from the other yet, a genuine sentimentality.

Jongho struggled to open his mouth, his words choking him as that suffocating feeling came back even stronger, “Y-Yeah, I did. I thought you would like to see the fireworks from somewhere not so up close. I’ve always thought they were prettier from this far,” he took a deep breath, “Come over here, you can see better,” he stood and helped Yeosang shift his chair to be next to his.

Yeosang sat close to his side, continuing to observe the show with his complete attention. The dim restaurant allowed the array of colors to light up his features. Jongho belatedly wondered how he had actually caught the boy’s attention, how he had gotten to this point of the date and not messed things up. He felt heat prickle the back of his neck, that pressure to make the move returning. Now was the perfect time. The firework show was bound to end soon and he didn’t want to waste the opportunity, not when Yeosang was so close. 

His head was buzzing as he looked at the older. There was this unique beauty to him, his expression so sharp but features so soft. He was an enigma, his gentleness and calm nature so unlike his cold exterior.

Yeosang turned his head to meet his gaze and they looked at each other silently for a few moments. Jongho felt that pull in his chest, his eyes lowered to the other’s lips. It felt like the world slowed down and he couldn’t hear the fireworks anymore, just the pounding of his heart. Yeosang leaned forward, Jongho mimicking his movement until he could feel the others breath against his cheek. He wanted to press their lips together, longing for that feeling he has craved for years, that feeling of unabashed freedom of being able to kiss someone he’s fond of.

He lifted his eyes to Yeosang’s one last time and he felt his chest freeze. Jongho pulled back, breathing shakily. He couldn’t do it, he couldn’t do it. It felt wrong, he was wrong, he wasn’t supposed to want to kiss him. But he  _ did  _ want it. He stared at Yeosang, fearful of what the other would say. The night was ruined, it had to be. There was no way this could be saved. He begged silently for the older to say something, anything.

Nothing ever came. Yeosang just wore that same fond, knowing smile. As if he could read Jongho like a book when he couldn’t even decipher the language. He didn’t speak a word to the younger and Jongho felt the flowers in his chest smother his breath once again.


	17. Be Prepared

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes there are people who have needs they can't ignore. No matter how hard they try. Hongjoong was one of those people, and he needed to learn to know and give into desire once in a while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey hey hey !! look at me !! posting a chapter really early !! i felt like you all deserved it after waiting so long for the last one, so here's a nice, pleasant treat (if you know what i mean *wink*) that being said, please look at the recent tags i added, the second half of this chapter applies to those so please read with caution. as always: stay safe, you are loved, and feedback is encouraged and appreciated.
> 
> p.s. S E O N G H W A . that's it. good luck team.

**Kim Hongjoong**

**Position: Character Attendant and Convention Guide Supervision, Magic Kingdom Park**

Hongjoong sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he tried to focus on the series of papers in front of him. The company decided to hold a meeting for the management staff and the corporate representative couldn’t even attend so they sent over the paperwork and reviews that needed signing and filing. Hongjoong had been the last to arrive, with the exception of Jaebeom who was almost always late. He was glancing over the first few in the pile, but he lacked the attention span to stare at them long enough to process a sentence. He continued to sign blank line after blank line until his hand hurt for what felt like hours.

The six supervisors sat around the conference table, silently looking over their own agendas. Namjoon was tapping lightly against the table’s surface, Irene occasionally sending him looks that were  _ trying _ to send some psychic message to stop. Chris was diligently looking over the notes. No matter how laid back he seemed, Hongjoong had to admit he took his work seriously. Rosé had already finished and was staring at the wall, hand lifted to her mouth while she bit at her fingernails. Jaebeom was restlessly bouncing his leg up and down as his eyes scanned the papers.

Namjoon cleared his throat, “Okay, so obviously we don’t have anyone to formally run this so let’s just go over stuff and then we can all head back to our locations. I got an email from corporate of things they wanted me to discuss specifically.”

“I’m going to assume they aren’t good things, then?” Rosé sighed to herself, leaning forward with her elbows on the table. 

He grimaced, “Yeah… the reviews are okay overall but the criticism is harsh from the last quarter. I’ll try to go through these quickly and once I’m done going over your reviews and if you’re finished the paperwork you can head back. There’s no point in keeping you here.”

Hongjoong kept his eyes trained on the table in front of him, anxiety climbing up his chest. His button up suddenly felt too tight. He needed to release his energy, he needed to get rid of that hot, burning feeling beneath his skin. That same feeling he had when he-

“Hongjoong,” Namjoon repeated.

The younger looked up to see the others staring at him, “What? Sorry, must’ve zoned out or something. What were you saying?”

“You don’t look so good, do you need some water?” Chris’s voice was laced with genuine concern, his expression matching his tone, “I can go get you some, it’s not-”

Hongjoong swallowed, “No, I’m fine. Just tired is all, I guess. Namjoon, you were saying?”

Namjoon nodded, looking over his papers, “There have been a few complaints about ride breakdowns, you had the most in proportion to the size of AdventureLand compared to the rest of us. Obviously that’s not something you can exactly prevent, but you need to make sure to fix the issues faster.”

“That’s not your fault, though,” Rosé reassured, twisting her strawberry blonde hair between her fingers, “It’s the maintenance team who needs to handle it, right? Jennie is usually on top of things, but you can have her reserve a specific technician for your area. I know we have Jongho around the Mansion all the time just because it breaks down so much.”

“Yeah, we have Changbin at Frontierland constantly because of Thunder Mountain and I know he frequents Fantasy Land whenever they need help. You could probably get that new guy, Changkyun, he just transferred from Hollywood Studios so he’s pretty accustomed to the old models,” Chris suggested.

Hongjoong nodded, rubbing his eyes with the heels of his palms, “Yeah, okay, I’ll get on that. What else?”

“You’ve also lost a lot of the College Program kids recently, most of them quitting because they didn’t like your leadership style. At least that’s what the reviews have said.”

He saw Jaebeom roll his eyes and shift in his seat, annoyed, “The College Program kids always submit transfer applications whenever they think they’re going to get fired.”

“I know the ones you’re talking about, when I was doing employee reviews there were two girls at the Jungle Cruise who never did their job and just talked the whole time,” Hongjoong closed his eyes trying to calm himself down, “They were more of a problem than they were coworkers.”

“Still,” Namjoon explained, “They included that in their reason for transfer and turns out it wasn’t the first time and with Chan, Rosé, and Irene managing to keep all of their CP kids it doesn’t look good for you. Corporate thinks that with how few rides you have in AdventureLand it should be a given that you keep all of the employees.”

The younger man avoided his gaze. He knew Namjoon would never mean to sound stern, and he certainly didn’t. He was just being firm with his words and he knew that no matter what excuses or reasons Hongjoong had, it didn’t matter to the company at the end of the day. Money was money. Losing workers can mean less money for them. They cared about the impression the park would give, so they focused on the complaints to eradicate the issues before they could get out of hand. He knew it was his own fault. No matter how many times Seonghwa, Yeosang, Wooyoung, and San told him, he didn’t realize he was unraveling. He could feel himself being chipped away, but he refused to slow down because slowing down meant slacking and slacking led to mistakes and mistakes led to termination. He worked too hard for that. The last thing he needed was this meeting reminding him that he was messing up regardless of how much effort he put into his job.

Hongjoong felt his eyes burn, he didn’t want to be the first one to go. He hated having everyone’s eyes on him as he was told all of the things he had done wrong. It wasn’t even like he could blame anyone but himself and having everyone watch as his mistakes were thrown back in his face was somewhat humiliating. He knew he was being too sensitive, thinking like a child, it made him feel out of control. What he needed was someone else to take over, someone who could take care of him, someone like-

“You also received a lot of feedback from current employees who have described you as being ‘irritable’ and ‘hot-headed’. There have been several instances of you being somewhat aggressive or overwhelming,” Namjoon looked sympathetic as he spoke, hating saying it just as much as Hongjoong hated hearing it.

“That’s not fair,” Chris interrupted, “Hongjoong gets stuck with some of the hardest rides to maintain in the park of course he’s going to get annoyed when some of his coworkers try to talk to him about things that aren’t important. Half of these shouldn’t even be his problem.”

Jaebeom and Irene stared down at the table unmoving, knowing they will likely get a similar complaint. Rosé fiddled with her pen, trying to keep her attention on anything but Hongjoong. He internally thanked them for not making a big deal of things, “Don’t worry about it, Chris, I should’ve seen this coming. I think I know who said those things, anyway, I’ll speak to him as soon as we’re done here.”

Chris slumped into his chair, looking like he wanted to say more but he held his tongue.

“Well that’s really all for you, so if you’ve finished your paperwork and looked over the better things that corporate had to say then you’re good to go.”

Hongjoong stood, straightening the pile of papers before sliding them over to him, “I’ll see you guys,” he said quickly, brain foggy with thoughts he couldn’t quite grab a hold of long enough to think coherently.

The others gave their soft goodbyes, most of the managers too sweet for their own good while he was just  _ angry _ . He was the angry manager, the second he walked far enough away he let out a breath he had been holding for weeks. His chest hurt, like he had a python squeezing him slowly as it wrapped its body around him. 

He walked as fast as he could back to AdventureLand, storming past the Crystal Palace to the entrance. His mind was clouded by that familiar feeling of being blank and completely crowded, senses overridden by the smothering air around him.

Seonghwa’s words from the bar circled around his brain like a runner doing laps: “You can have me, whenever you want. I don’t care. Use me when you need me.”

He refused to take his eyes off of the ground as he walked, one clear destination in mind he refused to get sidetracked from. That red-hot desire burned familiar in his veins. Hongjoong pressed his lips together, as if silencing his voice would silence his wants. The attractions blew past him in a blur. The Swiss Family Treehouse, Aladdin, Jungle Cruise, Tiki Room, Pirates.

When he glanced up his eyes set on his target, that flame blazing stronger deep in his belly. He forced his feet forward towards Seonghwa. He needed him.

His heart hammered in his chest, the pounding of his feet against the pavement growing louder and louder. When he was only steps away did the older look up from where he was spraying down the railings. Seonghwa’s eyebrows raised, his mouth falling open in an expression of shock. Hongjoong didn’t care.

“Come with me,” he gritted out, gripping his arm and tugging on Seonghwa harshly to follow him. 

The older said nothing, at least not anything that Hongjoong could be bothered to listen to. He knew what he needed. His heart raced, his face was flushed completely red and not with embarrassment. There was no use bothering with the humiliation when it could wait until later. He dug his short nails into the fabric of Seonghwa’s white uniform. It felt like a forest fire in his chest and he didn’t care about the consequences, he needed it  _ out _ .

He swung open the door to the entryway that led underground to the tunnels. Pulling so hard on the older the two nearly fell down the stairs from stumbling over their feet. His chest heaved with breaths as their footsteps echoed down the hall. He threw open the door to the familiar dressing room, yanking Seonghwa inside and slamming it shut. His hands were shaking as he hastily turned the knob to lock it, opting to trust in the flimsy veil of privacy.

He turned around to face Seonghwa who stood a mere two feet away from him, eyes set in a fierce gaze on the shorter. Hongjoong rushed forward, taking his shirt in his fists and pulling him into his body so Seonghwa had him cornered against the door. He forced their lips together, the clash lighting him up. The older’s lips were soft, contrasted by the harshness with which he pushed himself against the younger. He exhaled deeply into the kiss, the high being greater than he could have imagined. His mind had a switch that Seonghwa knew how to turn off while simultaneously turning him on.

The other pulled back, one hand against the wood behind him while the other rested gently against Hongjoong’s neck, index finger pressing against his pulse point. His eyes were dark, curious and needy, “What happened?” It sounded more like a demand than a question. 

Hongjoong could feel his breath against his skin, the sensation making him dizzy, “I hate meetings,” he answered simply, looking at Seonghwa in challenge, daring him to ask another question.

He swallowed, “What do you want me to do to help?” He licked his reddened lips, glancing down at Hongjoong’s that no doubt matched his. The older ran a hand through his hair while looking the younger up and down.

Hongjoong released the fabric of the uniform, instead smoothing them down the front until he reached Seonghwa’s belt where his delicate fingers traced over the buckle. He could feel the heat radiating off of his skin even through his clothing, “I want you. I need to take you right now.”

“ How?” he asked, his finger still moving and feeling along the column of Hongjoong’s neck, “How do you want to take me?”

Their breaths mingled between them, intoxicating Hongjoong like a sweet perfume that made him an addict, “In here, against the desk. I want you to fuck me… please,” he didn’t mean to sound as though he were begging, but he was growing desperate. He needed to chase that blissful euphoria of unawareness, that moment where everything melts away and all he feels is Seonghwa. He didn’t care if he had to beg for it again.

Seonghwa took him by the arm roughly, leading him over to the desk and pushing the younger up against it so the backs of his thighs hit the edge causing Hongjoong to yelp. He recaptured his lips and Hongjoong  _ melted _ . His brain became mush and all he could feel was Seonghwa’s tongue intertwined with his. He whined against the other’s mouth, asking for  _ more _ . The older understood and began unbuttoning his shirt, lips still connected to Hongjoong and unwilling to break. Once freed, Seonghwa pushed the sleeves off his shoulders and Hongjoong let him slip the fabric off his arms until it dropped to the floor.

All at once Seonghwa’s hands were everywhere. The pads of his fingers tracing and drumming over his skin, savoring every inch he managed to touch. He hooked his fingers into the belt loops of Seonghwa’s pants, tugging his hips forward against his and causing him to gasp against his lips, “ _ Fuck _ , Joong-”

Hongjoong slid his hands to the hem of his uniform’s shirt, forcing it up without a second thought. Seonghwa split from him for mere seconds that felt like an infinity only for their bare chests to collide after he discarded his shirt to meet his own on the floor. He dragged his nails over the smooth skin of his sides and squeezed just to have him impossibly closer. Hongjoong rutted against him, chasing that friction he felt when he was against the bathroom stall. Seonghwa grunted and gripped the neck of the smaller boy and Hongjoong felt his mind short-circuit, “Hwa…”

Seonghwa parted Hongjoong’s legs and let him grind against his thigh and Hongjoong could feel himself growing needy, “Now… need you now,” he threaded his fingers through Seonghwa’s jet black hair, using the leverage to yank the taller down to him. Seonghwa trailed kisses across his cheek and jaw, down his neck to that sensitive spot he remembered. Hongjoong tilted his head back for Seonghwa to leave his marks on him, his mouth fell open and eyes slipped shut. Breathy sounds left his lips, high and shallow, “Feels  _ so good _ … please… need more.”

The older used his other hand to palm him and the sensation sent electricity up his spine and heat pooled low in his abdomen. He bared his neck more, a moan coming deep from within his chest as Seonghwa sucked at his skin, “You’re so fucking hot… Seonghwa-”

“On your stomach,” Seonghwa’s voice was low, hungry, “ _ Now _ ,” he gripped Hongjoong’s hips and flipped him around forcing him to bend over. Hongjoong’s skin felt hot against the cool surface of the desk, his breath hitched as he felt the other’s long elegant fingers undo his button.

“W-Wait,” Hongjoong clumsily reached for the lowest drawer of the desk, remembering what Wooyoung had said the Cast Members had hidden there. He forced the drawer open, the contents rattling as he sifted through until he found what he needed, “I came down here for a reason,” he placed a bottle of lube and a spare condom on the desk, “Wooyoung… h-he has a lot of stories.”

Seonghwa stared at him, his lips red and swollen and hair a mess, “You… you actually thought this through…”

For a moment it felt like Hongjoong was going to have an epiphany, his logical side screaming at him to stop. He refused to listen, “Bend me over,” he said, words piercing the silence like knives.

Seonghwa pounced on him, grabbing his hips once again and pushing forward so Hongjoong’s ass was against his pelvis. He tugged the waistband of Hongjoong’s pants and briefs down to expose him completely. Hongjoong vaguely registered the older man’s actions, his head going completely blank until he can feel his finger at his entrance.

He bites back a whine as Seonghwa works him open slowly, “Fuck… please, faster, I need it now. I want you to fuck me, puh-please,” Hongjoong’s legs shook with the effort to hold himself together, to keep that control until he had permission to completely hand it over to him, “ _ You feel so good _ .”

Seonghwa pressed his lips to the back of the younger’s shoulder, causing the latter to shudder and arch his back, “Don’t be so impatient, we’re just getting started,” his breaths were heavy, hot against him, “I’ll take care of you,” he pushed another finger into him and Hongjoong thought his lip would bleed from how hard he bit it, “Don’t keep quiet,” Seonghwa commanded, continuing to move his fingers at a steady pace, thrusting in and out smoothly with little resistance, “We’re alone… I want to hear you.”

Hongjoong’s mouth opened slightly, with the hesitancy he always seemed to lack when he was around Seonghwa. Shallow breaths and soft whimpers spilled from his lips as the tension left his mind and gathered low in his abdomen, “Okay…,” he swallowed, accepting the pleasure building inside of him, “Okay.” 

He felt it deep in his being, that fire, which was often a horrific uncontrollable blaze, be tamed. The risk was worth that moment of pure bliss, where his senses dulled and nothing existed. Where there was no stress, no responsibilities. When Hongjoong didn’t feel the edge of the desk digging into his stomach and he didn’t feel the pressure behind his eyes. When all he felt was Seonghwa. 


	18. Something There

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The last thing Seonghwa had expected in all of his time working at the Magic Kingdom was to feel a real change, he expected to always do the same things and to feel the same things everyday. Even still, that didn't stop that unfamiliar sickness deep in his stomach that he was worried wasn't all that bad after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey hey hey check me out posting chapters regularly and being a responsible author :D anyway, i actually really had a hard time deciding on what direction i wanted to take this chapter in, but i think this was a good step and definitely starts to progress things even further now that we're getting close to rounding the halfway point !! now enough of me typing on and on let's get into it. (as per usual feedback is appreciated and welcomed please stay safe and ily always)
> 
> p.s. yes . I love seonghwa . please don't get mad at me .

**Park Seonghwa**

**Position: Custodial Services, Magic Kingdom Park**

Seonghwa took a deep breath, his fingers shaking as he buttoned Hongjoong’s shirt. His lips tingled with the sensation left by Hongjoong’s lips, like a ghost hovering over his mouth. Hongjoong sat almost lifelessly on top of the desk, legs dangling over the edge and swinging slightly. His eyes were shut as he leaned back against the mirror and he breathed, heavy and slow. Seonghwa finished tucking Hongjoong’s shirt into his pants and smoothed it out for the younger.

He could still feel Hongjoong’s hands running through his hair, his blunt nails dragging over his scalp, his skin against his, how _warm_ he was. Seonghwa pulled out the chair, sitting down roughly in front of Hongjoong so he could look up at the smaller. He silently rubbed his hand over Hongjoong’s thigh, trying to sooth him. Hongjoong sighed, indulging in the touch as a low hum came from his throat.

“Joong…,” Seonghwa started, “We need to talk about it,” his heartbeat quickened as he watched him sit up straighter, the other’s sleepy look making him even dreamier.

Hongjoong curled in on himself slightly, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have-”

“Don’t apologize,” Seonghwa interrupted, cutting him off, “Please. Don’t say you’re sorry. I told you that you never have to say those words to me and I meant it. I just want to know what happened. At the bar you told me it would only happen that one time and to forget it and then you pulled me down here without warning,” he kept his voice soft. Even if Hongjoong wasn’t as fragile as he had been the last time, Seonghwa was learning he had a sensitive heart, “I’m confused… and worried.”

The younger picked at the fabric of his pants, “I don’t… I don’t know what you want me to say,” his face held that expression he always seemed to wear, like the cogs in his head were working too fast and not at all.

“Tell me what happened. What made you upset enough to come to me?”

Hongjoong refused to meet his eyes, choosing to stare at where Seonghwa still had a hand on his thigh, “I told you… I hate meetings,” he took a deep breath, his chest rising and falling heavily with it, “I didn’t do so great in the last quarter reviews.”

Seonghwa nodded in understanding, “Is that the big meeting San told me about? He said you were stressing over it, but I thought it was just you being you about things.”

Ever since he had known Hongjoong, he seemed to constantly be on edge about things he didn’t even need to be anxious about. Seonghwa had thought he was overexaggerating, but the more he spoke to San, and after seeing Hongjoong at the breaking point, he was starting to doubt his assumptions. Hongjoong wasn’t what he had thought… he was the opposite. He wasn’t too guarded, he was too vulnerable. Seonghwa didn’t want to admit, let alone acknowledge, that he had started to care even the littlest bit about his supervisor. Still, after watching him fall apart at the prospect of losing his job, he may have developed his own understanding of the younger’s nature.

“Yeah,” Hongjoong licked his lips, rubbing his eyes with his knuckles and pressing into the sockets, “Um… I was overthinking it. I should’ve known I would get bad reviews.”

Seonghwa felt his chest tighten, he had complained to the company about him not too long ago… and now he was seeing the fallout. He continued to rub circles into Hongjoong’s thigh with his thumb. His shoulders hung low. He felt ashamed of himself now that he had filed a report, he should’ve tried just speaking to the younger, but he was too blinded by anger.

“You’re really hard on yourself,” Seonghwa said simply.

Hongjoong laughed a little at the blunt observation, “Yeah, I’ve been told, but I don’t see it like that. I’m just holding myself to the standard I should be expected to reach, you know? Before you came here I was just a random usher at Pirates and now I’m here, it took me over three years… I shouldn’t be failing already.”

“You’re not failing,” the older shifted forward on his chair to be closer to the boy in front of him. Seonghwa felt his heart squeeze. He had never expected to see this side of Hongjoong, he didn’t even know it existed, but San had told him about this version of him. He was vulnerable and soft spoken, not closed off or angry.

“Aren’t I? I can’t get anyone to listen to me so I yell and that ends up backfiring because they end up not doing what I tell them to,” Hongjoong sighed, putting his head in his hands, “Maybe you were right when you said I was the problem…”

The older’s breath stopped in his lungs, guilt hit him like a tidal wave and he froze. He had never thought Hongjoong would remember his words, he didn’t think anything he said stuck with the younger at all. Yet, here he was, having those words said back to him and feeling the true weight they held over Hongjoong. Seonghwa bit his lip, eyes looking up at Hongjoong’s fallen expression, “I didn’t mean that,” he said quietly.

“Seonghwa… you did mean that, or at least you meant it at the time,” Hongjoong twisted the cuff of his sleeve, wrinkling the white fabric, “Namjoon told me I was being too aggressive and it overwhelmed everyone. Apparently it wasn’t just the CP kids who complained, I was expecting it from them but some of the current employees have filed complaints as well. I knew one of them had to be you,” Hongjoong met his gaze, dark sad eyes landing on his own.

“Joong I-”

“You don’t need to defend yourself, not when you’re right. You and the others… you deserve a better supervisor, you don’t need somebody like me breathing down your necks all the time. I used to be like San… I mean I was never as carefree, but I was happy and didn’t worry this much. I want that back. I miss being actual friends with the people I work with. I miss feeling good when I worked. San won’t say it, but he’s disappointed in me, Wooyoung and Yeosang and Chris too. Everything just feels like a lot and I get annoyed and I snap at people.” Hongjoong shut his eyes, his next words coming out quiet and broken, “I shouldn’t be this angry.”

Seonghwa swallowed dryly. He felt sick, guilt squeezing at his heart and breaking it, “I’m sorry,” he reached for Hongjoong’s hand, gently taking it and holding it in his own. He traced the other’s prominent knuckles with his thumb, “It’s partly my fault… I didn’t realize what I was doing affected you this much, I was pissed and to get back at you for the lectures I would do more shit to make you mad. I-I’m _so_ sorry.”

Hongjoong’s shoulders shook, “I’m tired, Seonghwa. I want it to stop.”

The older nodded, “I know,” he thought out his next words carefully, “I wish I could take it away.”

He laughed a bit dejectedly, “And I wish you had known me before. We probably would have gotten along, I used to mess around like you and San and Jin and Eric. I don’t know what happened to me.”

Seonghwa squeezed his hand, “I think we’re getting along fine… at least now.”

“You think so?” Hongjoong met his eyes again, “I thought you still hated me, I thought you did this just to get me to back off of you when we’re working or to get some action or whatever.”

“No, no. I wouldn’t do it for that… I mean it when I say I want to help and before when I said it would be great if it got you off my back I-I _was_ looking out for myself,” his voice was low, barely above a whisper, “Now I want to do it to make sure you’re okay. I really am getting worried about you. Yeosang told Jongho that you have breakdowns over this shit, over your job, and even though you say I shouldn’t… I still feel guilty,” the truth poured from between his lips like a river, “Part of your stress is me and I wish I could take back what I’ve done, but I can’t. So I want to make up for it now.”

Hongjoong shook his head, “No, it’s my fault. I’m too hard on everyone, especially you and the last thing I should be doing is demanding you to fuck me-”

“You’re not demanding,” Seonghwa interrupted, now holding both of Hongjoong’s hands in his, “I offered. I don’t care how many times I have to tell you, but you aren’t forcing me into anything I’m not willing to do. I want to be there for you, and it’s not about me and I should have realized it never was. It’s about you and what I can do to make your job easier. I understand now, I know why you act the way you do. Jongho told me what Yeosang said about you being under so much pressure i-it almost… it almost breaks you,” he licked his lips nervously, not wanting to overstep his boundaries as if he hadn’t done so already, “I’m here to help you, okay? _I care_ …”

“But why?” Hongjoong asked. His eyes filled with genuine curiosity, but broken like shards glass like he couldn’t begin to understand how Seonghwa could say such a thing, “I only make your life harder. Why would you want to?”

Seonghwa rubbed his thumbs in circles over the backs of Hongjoong’s hands. He never should have gone out of his way to piss off the younger, he took it too far too many times. His actions caused his slow spiral like a domino effect. All of it amounted to this, to having Hongjoong in front of him with messy hair and distant eyes, swollen lips and marked up skin. Seonghwa couldn’t begin to see Hongjoong the way he had just weeks ago even if he tried. Maybe he had even changed himself. In the past few days he hardly spoke to or bothered Hongjoong, never leaving his assigned areas and not talking back when told to do something. Even if he had to ignore his impulses to go against instruction and do as he pleased, he had felt like his effort at the very least took some of the pressure off of his manager’s shoulders. He couldn’t describe what exactly compelled him to change in the first place, maybe it was seeing how much of a toll it took on him that day in the bathrooms, but he’d grown fond of him. Ever since he felt Hongjoong’s lips against his and he watched his eyes shatter, Seonghwa had to protect him.

The older collected himself, making sure his words would count, “You’re a good person, Hongjoong. I know I never say that, and I wouldn’t have believed it at first, but I understand you now. I can see that it was never about me being irresponsible or going against your authority, it was about you having that control and doing the best you can,” he felt Hongjoong’s hands tremor slightly, “You’re scared and I get that now. I should have noticed it sooner and listened to Jongho and San when they told me that all you wanted was to do your job. I should have listened to you. You weren’t the one making our lives harder, it was the opposite and I’m so sorry. For everything.”

Hongjoong sniffed, “You weren’t completely in the wrong, though. You deserve to have some freedom with where you decide to go and I should allow you to roam and clean where you see fit since it’s your job. I got so wrapped up in wanting to be in charge and know everything that I took it out on you and the others over every little thing,” he looked up at the ceiling and blinked a few times to clear his eyes of that familiar misty haze, “I know how it feels to be in your position and feel like I’m being watched so closely that I can’t even complete a task properly. I was more of a tyrant than a supervisor,” he settled his gaze back on Seonghwa, “I’m sorry too, I’m sorry for treating you the way I did, you didn’t deserve it.”

“You’re going to be fine, Joong, nothing is going to happen to you. You’re not going to lose your job and I won’t tell anyone about any of this. I promise,” Seonghwa reassured, standing so he could look down on the younger from where the latter was sitting, “We should get back, we’ve been gone for almost an hour…”

Hongjoong nodded, “That’s probably a good idea,” he pushed himself off of the counter and winced slightly.

Seonghwa was immediately by his side, holding onto his arm to keep him steady, “Here let me help you until we get up there.”

The younger took a few steps and was completely fine, but Seonghwa kept a hand on him just to be sure, “Thank you,” he took a deep breath in, “I know it’s probably not good for either of us to do things like this, but those few minutes of feeling nothing…,” he exhaled, like he was still trying to savor that peace he had moments ago before he had to return to the real world, “I need them.”

“Then my offer still stands,” Seonghwa opened the door, leading them out into the main tunnel, “You can use me whenever you’d like.”

“And you’re sure about this?” Hongjoong looked at him with that genuine wonder he had only just begun to see, “I’m serious, Hwa, this isn’t something to offhandedly agree to without thinking, I don’t want to take advantage of you. If you don’t want to continue with this then you can tell me and we can pretend it never happened.”

“Hongjoong, I told you a million times. I’m okay with it and even though I’m doing it to help you it’s not like I’m not enjoying it.”

Hongjoong flushed red, averting his gaze to the floor. Still, the corners of his lips turned upward the slightest bit.

The older smirked at the flustered reaction, “You’re looking happier already.”

He rolled his eyes and knocked into Seonghwa’s shoulder with his own playfully, “I’ll stay happy if you stay where you’re supposed to, don’t think I didn’t know about you trying to take over for Youngjae when he was on his break,” he teased.

“It sounds like you want to keep me around, don’t want me wandering too far from you, huh?” Seonghwa bounced back, trying to lighten the mood a little more as they approached the tunnels’ exit.

“More like I want you to do your job, it’s a bonus if I can find you easily,” he giggled. _Giggled_. 

Seonghwa’s heart jumped in his chest, picking up a speed as an unfamiliar churning began deep in the pit of his stomach. He had never heard Hongjoong’s laugh before, he hardly even saw the younger smile. It was low, and soft, reminding him of windchimes. His lips suddenly felt cold as his eyes fell onto Hongjoong’s, that subtle smile still gracing the soft curve of them. His profile was a juxtaposition in and of itself. His skin was smooth, eyes warm and lashes delicate that contrasted beautifully with his sharp nose and the prominent edge of his jaw. Heat spread throughout Seonghwa’s chest.

“Are you still with me, Hwa?”

The nickname sent electricity down his spine, thinking of how good it sounded coming from Hongjoong’s lips breathlessly. He shook the thoughts from his head, “Yes, yeah, sorry,” he helped the younger up the last of the stairs despite him seeming perfectly capable to walk on his own.

Light from the sun flooded his vision and he held a hand up to shield his eyes. He loosened his grip slightly on Hongjoong’s arm and slid his hand down to the younger’s wrist to hold it instead. As soon as they made it out into the open, with tourists and workers walking in every direction, he could only feel Hongjoong’s eyes on him. Seonghwa slowly took hold of his hand experimentally and he intertwined their fingers together as they walked. Hongjoong paid him no mind, seemingly unphased while Seonghwa could hardly breathe.

“Hongjoong! Seonghwa!” He heard a voice call out and he looked up searching the faces in front of him until they landed on San who was jogging up to them.

Hongjoong immediately snatched his hand back, pulling away from the older and standing up straighter. Putting the mask back on. Seonghwa’s face fell and he shifted his gaze to the ground, opting to follow behind.

San came up to them out of breath, “Hey… I’ve been looking for you everywhere,” he ran a hand through his hair, “Your walkie-talkie isn’t on by the way.”

“ _Shit_ , I had no idea,” Hongjoong yanked the device from his pocket, turning it on as he gestured with his hand for San to continue.

“Anyway, Jin told me to find you and tell you that Namjoon tried to radio you, but because he never got an answer from your channel he decided to connect to Jin’s. He wanted to make sure you knew that another meeting is scheduled between you and the company representative to discuss the terms and conditions for some position change. Namjoon didn’t give any details, but he wanted to keep you updated after that big meeting from this morning.”

Seonghwa glanced to see Hongjoong’s reaction, he watched as the color drained from his face, “Oh… o-okay. Thank you, San,” he swallowed and scratched at his neck, “Thank you for coming to tell me, I’m sorry for making you leave Jungle Cruise and come all the way over here. Take an extra ten minute break later.”

San’s mouth fell open in shock and Seonghwa would have found it amusing if he wasn’t busy keeping his eyes on Hongjoong, “Are you feeling okay, Joong?”

“Yes, I’m fine,” he pressed his lips together, “Look, I need to go. I've wasted enough time already today and I’m sure a thousand things have already gone wrong. Seonghwa, stick to the area between Pirates and Jungle Cruise. San… thank you.”

The manager walked off quickly, not bothering to see San’s confused expression, “What the hell happened to him?” San turned to Seonghwa, looking him up and down, “And what the hell happened to you?”

Seonghwa stared at Hongjoong’s retreating figure. His heart felt pained, and he wasn’t exactly sure of the cause anymore, “I wish I knew.”


	19. Remember Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yunho's biggest fear was falling back into old habits, becoming no one again. How could he leave everything he has and still stay himself?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> howdy !! so i was really torn with this chapter but i decided to take it in a more /personal/ direction. i hope you like it even though its EXTREMELY dialogue heavy and i apologize in advance for that, i had a lot to cover from the last few chapters. as per usual: stay healthy and feedback is always welcomed/appreciated.
> 
> p.s. i know this chapter can be a little overwhelming with info, and not the most romantic kind, but i hope you still enjoy it as much as i enjoyed writing it :>

**Jeong Yunho**

**Position: After Hour Security, Magic Kingdom Park**

Yunho waited in the parking lot at the Magic Kingdom. It was getting late, but he had told Seonghwa and Jongho he would pick them up to go out to dinner. He had off anyway and he knew he had to tell them about his job at some point. Ever since the meeting with his boss he hadn’t known what to do, every night he had to work felt like the last and he was starting to grow paranoid. He still went to the Parlor, but he was much less talkative and he felt like he was slipping. Mingi tried to make up for his silence, even if it occasionally led to him oversharing. Yunho only hoped the younger wouldn’t get too distant.

He sighed and leaned back against the headrest, trying to calm his nerves before he had to face his roommates. There was no way to keep subtlety, he had to be straightforward and blunt. Still, he wasn’t ready to tell Seonghwa. The two had been together for so long, he wasn’t ready to transfer away from the older yet. He was Yunho’s best friend, he knew him better than almost anyone and they have already put in so much effort to stay with each other. The thought of leaving made a lump form in his throat. He heard a knock on the passenger window and he quickly blinked the burning away from his eyes, unlocking the car from where he was in the driver’s seat.

When the door opened he was met with Seonghwa’s warm smile and bright eyes, “Hi, Jongho will be here in a few seconds he just had to make a phone call to someone,” he said as he tossed his bag in the back and climbed into the passenger seat.

“Oh,” Yunho sat up straighter, “Who was it?”

“I’m not sure,” Seonghwa settled into a comfortable sitting position, sighing when he could finally get off of his feet for the day, “I think he’s seeing someone and hasn’t told us. You know, I came home from work the other day and his dress shirt was missing. I didn’t tell him I noticed, but if he’s trying to keep it a secret he’s doing terribly,” he grinned, excitement lacing his voice, “I wonder who it is.”

“Do you think it’s someone we know? I can’t imagine it’s one of the other maintenance guys, they’re not his type at all,” Yunho couldn’t help but laugh at the thought, Seonghwa’s lighthearted energy rubbing off on him, “Then again, I don’t think he even has a type to go off of… he hasn’t had a boyfriend has he?”

“He hasn’t,” Seonghwa confirmed, “I just don’t know he has the time to see…,” he bolted upright, “ _ Holy shit!  _ It has to be Yeosang. Who else does he see or talk to other than us? It has to be him, Jongho was talking to me about him the other day when I was venting about Hongjoong. I mean, I know we didn’t have a clue what his type was but the last thing I expected was pretty boys.”

Yunho chuckled, “You met Yeosang didn’t you? When you ran into him and Hongjoong and their other roommate? What was he like?”

“I didn’t get to talk to him very much, we introduced ourselves and maybe said like five words to each other beyond that. Jongho was too busy keeping Yeosang to himself for me to even get the chance to have a real conversation with him,” Seonghwa ran a hand through his hair messily, “I can’t believe I didn’t pick up on this sooner.”

“Sometimes you just can’t see what’s right in front of you,” Yunho teased.

Seonghwa rolled his eyes, “What would you know about that? When was the last time you went out with a guy?”

He flushed red and stumbled over his words, “Sh-Shut up. I could ask you the same thing, I don’t see you bringing anyone home.”

The older rolled his eyes, “Touché.”

The two of them whirled their heads around at the sound of the car door opening from the backseat, watching as Jongho threw his bag into the seat next to his. He slumped into his spot, groaning as he did so. There was a beat of silence before he opened his eyes to look at them.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” The youngest asked, an eyebrow raised in question.

Seonghwa and Yunho glanced at each other, a silent conversation taking place between them in a fraction of a second, “We wanted to know who that phone call was with. If it was anyone we should be keeping our eye out for or expecting over at the apartment any time soon?”

Jongho's mouth opened and closed a few times, “I-I… he…,” he sighed, visibly resigning himself to the endless questions he was about to receive from his roommates, “Yeah. Yes. Are you happy now?”

“Is it Yeosang?” Seonghwa leaned towards him, “If I remember correctly I saw you eyeing him up at the pub the other night. Is there something there?”

Jongho wore a faint smile, “I think so… maybe. He’s a really sweet guy, but I might have messed everything up and I feel like he’s too nice to tell me that. I don’t know, I don’t know how this works,” he bit his lip, “I’m kind of an idiot.”

Yunho pouted, “Why? What happened?”

Seonghwa held up a hand, “Hold on, how did you two even meet? It had to have been at work, right? When could you have asked him out?”

“We met at the mansion when I had to do a repair and he had to show me where to go. It happened a few times. We ended up getting along really well and we also had mutual friends.”

“What mutual friends?” Yunho propped his head up with his hand, adjusting himself to be comfortable. He enjoyed when they had little talks like this, even if it meant they would be getting dinner late. It had been so long since the three of them spent time together like this, when they got to talk about their lives and update one another. He forgot how much these moments meant to him and that there was more than only one person here for him.

Jongho glanced up at Seonghwa, “H-Hongjoong,” he put his hands up, “I know what you’re going to say and-”

Seonghwa shook his head, “I told you, Jongho, I’m not mad about you being friends with him. I’m not even mad at Hongjoong anymore, we came to an understanding today after his meeting. He pulled me aside and we talked it out, there’s nothing to worry about there anymore. Plus, when you told me about the stuff he goes through being a supervisor I didn’t have it in me to still be angry with him.”

“Wow,” Yunho put a hand on his shoulder, “How mature of you to move past your differences.”

Seonghwa shoved him off, “Drop the attitude, I’m older than you, you know. I can change my point of view when I’m presented with new information.”

Yunho grinned, “You need to tell me more about what your talk with Hongjoong was like, I can’t believe a rivalry like that ended with one conversation.”

That voice was still in the back of his mind, telling him that he should have known this already. What kind of roommate was he to not know some of the biggest parts of their lives? What kind of best friend was he? He couldn’t keep up with his own life let alone theirs. Jongho had been seeing someone,  _ crushing _ on someone, which had never happened in all of the time Yunho had known him. Even Seonghwa coming to terms with Hongjoong being his supervisor and settling on an agreement with him was likely one of the most important events since the two of them transferred. Maybe moving back to Epcot was what he deserved.

“Anyway,” Jongho brought the attention back to himself, “I wasn’t the one to ask him out, it was the other way around. It happened when we were at Raglan and he sat next to me; we talked for a little while and right before we left he asked me out. Then something came up and I had to have a meeting with corporate to discuss some raise opportunities and I had to cancel on him.”

“So you rescheduled,” Seonghwa supplied for him.

“Yeah,” Jongho continued smoothly, “I let him know I couldn’t make it and that I would take him somewhere the next weekend, my treat obviously. We went to Ohana’s and I had it planned out so we could watch the fireworks from where we sat.”

Yunho smiled, “That’s so thoughtful, how could you mess that up? If any boy put that much effort into a first date with me I would’ve bought the ring that night.”

Jongho pinched the bridge of his nose, “Maybe Yeosang would have thought the same thing… If I didn’t pull away when we were about to kiss.”

“You  _ what _ ? What do you mean?” The eldest twisted completely around, “Why would you pull away?”

“I… We were having a great night, I don’t know. I was sitting next to him and the moment was perfect, the fireworks were going off and it was right at the end of the date. We were like two inches apart and something in me panicked and I pulled back. I regretted it as soon as it happened, I felt like an idiot and Yeosang didn’t even say anything he acted like it was fine. That’s what the phone call was about actually. Ever since then we’ve been talking all the time still and he told me not to worry, that it’s normal and he’s not hurt. But what if he’s just being nice?”

“I don’t think he’s doing it to save your feelings, Jongho. I think he means it,” Yunho spoke quietly. Something about the younger’s situation reminded him of Mingi and a part of him ached, itching to pull out his phone and text him. 

Jongho shook his head, “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. It was going perfectly and I  _ wanted _ to kiss him, but I couldn’t. I had everything planned and I blew it.”

Seonghwa nodded, “I know what you mean, I think it’s because he’s your first real almost-boyfriend. You’re going to be a little hesitant to do anything. Besides, it was the first date and I don’t know too many people who would make that move on the first date.”

“I’m going to kill Changbin, he gives the worst advice. I swear I'm never listening to him again,” the youngest groaned, “I don’t want to talk about this anymore. Seonghwa, what did you mean when you talked to Hongjoong? You didn’t mention that on our way over here.”

Seonghwa’s cheeks grew red and Yunho watched Jongho raise his eyebrow out of the corner of his eye. Seonghwa had been acting a little strange whenever it came to his supervisor lately. It’s like he felt differently day to day, his feelings unpredictable. Yunho hadn’t gotten to listen to his rants as often with his recent stress from his job, but he found it hard to believe that Seonghwa had actually managed to make amends with Hongjoong of all people.

“Well, he had that massive meeting this morning for quarterly reviews and he didn’t tell me much about it, but he came to see me because of a critique from corporate. He was told that employees complained about how he was an aggressive manager and difficult to work with. Hongjoong knew I had to be one of them so he pulled me aside to talk in private for a little while.”

Yunho held up a hand, “Wait, wait. You  _ willingly _ followed him?”

“I-I mean yeah. I wasn’t in the mood to battle with him, I guess, and Jongho telling me how hard work is on him, on top of when I saw him almost pass out from being overworked, I was kind of sympathetic,” Seonghwa fiddled with the silver chain around his neck, as if he was nervous to be sharing what happened, “I told him that I understood now why he behaved the way he did and he apologized for being so strict. We agreed that I would follow his rules as long as he communicates and doesn’t breathe down my neck.”

“So you are actually… okay? You’re okay with him now?” Jongho asked.

Seonghwa nodded gently, with a bit of hesitance in his expression, “Yeah… I think we might be friends? I’m not sure, the lines are blurry, it’s complicated. I might actually be worried? I know that probably seems out of nowhere, but I watched him almost break down the other week and it was unsettling.”

“How do  _ you _ feel about him? If you’re worried and you both surrendered then where does that leave you?” Yunho asked.

Seonghwa shifted, hugging his arms to his chest and making himself look smaller, “Hongjoong said that if we had met earlier, we would be friends. I believe him, we were at each other’s throats over petty arguments that kept snowballing until both of us snapped. Now that it’s resolved I can maybe see us getting along? We talked about a lot and we understand each other now,” he took a deep breath, “It’s been weird lately, changes are happening too fast I can’t keep up.”

Guilt settled heavy in Yunho’s stomach. He didn’t like change either, he was comfortable where he was and he had been taking it for granted for too long. He felt a pressure on his chest that made it hard to breathe. Leaving the Magic Kingdom would be too much. He already had a lacking social life, if he left it would mean losing all of his friends. There wouldn’t be a way for him to see anyone, let alone maintain relationships. Sure, he would live with Jongho and Seonghwa, but working at an entirely different park on an entirely different schedule would completely throw off their routine. If he isn’t considered essential personnel here, there was no way he would be worth anything somewhere as big as Epcot. He would need to relearn everything. Yunho would be nobody again.

“I need to tell you guys something,” he swallowed dryly.

Seonghwa and Jongho turned all of their attention towards him, recognizing the seriousness laced into his tone. He felt his heart fracture looking at them, they were his family. How could he tell them he was leaving?

“I didn’t tell you about a few things and I feel like I should now that all of us are together since we’re getting everything out in the open.”

Seonghwa’s eyes were comforting, intent and heavy with concern, “What’s wrong? You’re scaring me.”

“Please tell me you didn’t kill anyone,” Jongho added, trying to lighten the mood and diffuse the tension in the car.

Yunho glanced out the window at the street lights in the parking lot illuminating the surrounding area of the car, “No,” he smiled, a bit joylessly, “No, I didn’t kill anyone. I wanted to tell you about a meeting I had with my own manager.”

The two nodded in sync, waiting for him to share more.

He looked down at his lap, too nervous to look them in the eye, “I got a call that scheduled a time for me and my manager to get together to discuss my position. I initially thought it would be about our reviews since it’s around the same time the day-time employees were having theirs. I asked around with my coworkers and none of them said they got a call, so I started getting a little worried. I thought it was going to be about my job performance, since sometimes I slack off early on in my shift when I first get there.”

His roommates didn’t interrupt, continuing to follow his story and hanging onto every word that came from his lips.

“When I got there, it was really formal and it felt like all of the energy in the room left the second that I walked in and I knew it was going to be bad,” he felt his stability waver and his emotions threatening to spill. The truth was aching to get out, clawing at his chest like a lion in a cage, “I sat down with him and we talked for a little while about the current state of the park, how I felt the security was structured, my own opinions on how we distribute locations and hours and all of that. He told me that the amount of security guards in my given location was overstocked on personnel,” he inhaled a shaky breath, “They are going to make some cuts if nobody ends up quitting in the next few weeks and if they can’t reorganize us to take over other sections of the park. If the worst ends up happening, they said transfers will be made to other parks in Disney.”

He glanced up and locked eyes with Seonghwa, watching as the older lifted a hand to his mouth and his expression broke, “Yunho…”

“Please, wait,” he felt tears well up in his eyes, but he refused to let them fall, “I-If they make cuts, I’m going to be the first to go. They feel that I’m expendable since I have a reputation at Epcot and can easily secure a position there. Nothing is set in stone, but they said it’s likely and that I shouldn’t be surprised if I receive a phone call to discuss the transfer process.”

Yunho felt a hand on his shoulder. He lifted his head to see Seonghwa in front of him, eyes like shattered glass and lips downturned. He had unshed tears of his own in those eyes that always seemed filled with light. Jongho said nothing, only taking measured breaths that he was too focused on trying to keep even. Seonghwa parted his lips to speak, but nothing came out except for a soft, broken exhale. The silence was louder than Yunho could have imagined.


	20. Shoulder to Shoulder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yeosang knew he had a tendency to overthink, especially when his affections always had the potential to snowball into something stronger. If only he knew how to communicate without needing someone there to push him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello hello!! sorry for such a delay with this one, I recently had a ton of tests and an insanely busy schedule but trust that I should be doing more cohesive uploads when I can. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter and can appreciate the *coughs* HINTS I drop. as always, feedback is always appreciated and stay safe!!
> 
> p.s. happy halfway point!! things are about to get a hell of a lot more interesting than they already are.

**Kang Yeosang**

**Position: Haunted Mansion Employee, Magic Kingdom Park**

Yeosang pressed the heels of his palms against his eye sockets, his head pounding like there was a hammer slamming against the walls of his skull. The summer heat was overwhelmingly hot, the sun had been beating down on him and his coworkers for hours and he had just about had it. Having to stick to the script and act like a stone faced butler for so long left his mind to wander. He thought of Jongho. Ever since their night spent together the weekend before, Yeosang had been trying his best to keep up with him.

He had never felt more alive than he felt sitting next to Jongho. Sitting there, looking out at the Magic Kingdom fireworks, he could feel his heart race and his body go completely numb. When Yeosang shut his eyes he could still see Jongho’s face, washed with shades of purple and blue. He took a deep breath, detaching himself from his irritating surroundings even if only for a moment. Yeosang could briefly feel the younger boy’s body heat, warming his side pleasantly. He pictured Jongho’s face inches away from his own. His plump, full lips and dark eyes so close to his. They were so close.

“Yeosang,” he heard a small voice come from behind him. He turned to see Mina standing there, arms behind her back and eyes squinted in an attempt to lessen the brightness of the sun.

“Hey, is something wrong? Is it the audio cues again?” Ever since he became the lead employee at the Haunted Mansion, he seemed to get in tune with all of the daily problems and mishaps. The raise was amazing, but the stress was a little more than he was used to. He kind of understood why Hongjoong was so anxious all the time, he couldn’t imagine being under the pressure of having to keep an entire section of the park running.

Mina shook her head, her dark black hair swaying as she did so, “No, it’s your break time. You told me to let you know when it was because you don’t have your watch with you today.”

He let out a sigh of relief, “Okay, good, I was worried for a second,” he stepped away from the podium where he was tending to the entering guests, “That means it’s Han’s break too. I’ll go and grab him and head to the back room. Go ahead and grab one of the CP kids to stay out here with you. You’re good to take over from here, right?”

She nodded silently, moving into the same position where he stood, “Have a nice break, I’ll come get you if anything happens out here.”

“Thanks, Mina, see you in fifteen.”

Yeosang parted from her, walking towards the ride’s exit to find Han. He didn’t particularly like or dislike the other’s company. Han was sweet, kind of loud when he wanted to be, but Yeosang was friends with Wooyoung so he could handle a little obnoxiousness from time to time. He followed the pathway to where guests were filtering out in the opposite direction. Han was standing there, solemnly nodding at them and bidding them that classic scripted goodbye. For someone who seemed to have so much energy he was surprisingly good at keeping a straight face and staying in character. 

“Han, let’s go, it’s time for our break,” Yeosang said, keeping his voice low so none of the tourists could hear. He made the mistake of speaking out of script too loudly once before, almost getting fired on the spot until Jisoo explained that he was new and didn’t know any better. 

He walked stiffly inside, not letting himself break until he entered the hallway shielded from the ride’s soon-to-be passengers. Han jogged to catch up to him, “I swear we need to set up a fan or something out there, or get more breathable uniforms because I’m going to have to start wearing sponges under my armpits.”

“I’m sure management would love to hear that suggestion. In fact, you should tell them what you told me word for word. Maybe they’ll take you up on permanently adding sponges to each jacket,” Yeosang teased, his tone dripping with playful sarcasm.

Han huffed, “I miss Jisoo, at least she thought I was funny.”

“Trust me, she didn’t,” Yeosang grabbed the set of keys from his coat pocket, unlocking the door to the storage room where they always took their breaks. He turned the doorknob and held it open for the younger.

He strode past him, flipping on the light switch. The bulb flickered for a few seconds before fully turning on. The storage room was more of a hang-out place for the Haunted Mansion workers for when they wanted to escape the heat. Boxes lined the walls and a clothing rack was set up with extra maid and butler uniforms. Yeosang took a deep breath, breathing in the cold stale air that felt so much more refreshing than the fatal humidity outside.

“I can’t stand working here sometimes,” he mumbled to himself.

His coworker tossed him a water bottle, leaning against the wall opposite to him, “I know, we don’t even have a good break room and we can’t leave the ride to go somewhere. The performers are so lucky, they get to hang out in the tunnel dressing rooms while we get crammed in closets,” Han complained. The shorter boy ran a hand through his hair, causing it to stick up in all directions, Yeosang made a mental note to tell him to stop doing that in the future.

“The least they could’ve done was clear this place out, we don’t even need half of the things in these boxes. I was thinking about asking you and a few others to stay late one night, maybe help me get these down there. My roommate knows an empty dressing room they use for storage and said they wouldn’t even notice,” Yeosang a long drink from the bottle.

Han nodded, eyebrows furrowing slightly as he thought, “What’s your roommate’s name again? I think I remembered him from the last time we went out to Raglan.”

“Wooyoung, he was the one you wouldn’t stop talking to all night.”

He snapped his fingers, “Right! I think he’s been at my apartment before. If he’s the same Wooyoung who had a thing with Changbin a few months back then that must be where I know him from.”

Yeosang rolled his eyes, partly out of fondness and partly out of annoyance. Wooyoung used to be so relentless with the people he caught eyes for, it wouldn’t surprise him if his roommate had slept with half of the park. He remembered how many times he would wake up in the middle of the night to the sound of the front door opening and footsteps from the opposite side of the apartment. Yeosang licked his lips, “Yeah, that was him. I can’t believe he had the audacity to judge me for going out with a maintenance guy when he went through  _ that _ phase. No offense to Changbin.”

“How is that going by the way? The date I mean? I can’t imagine you’d take a whole night off work for someone who wasn’t worth it,” Han smiled at him teasingly in a way that contradicted the innocent look he had when his cheeks puffed out. 

The older considered his words, deciding how much to share with the other. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Han, he just had a reputation for not being the best at keeping secrets. Still, it wasn’t like he could be any worse than Wooyoung, “It went great… I think? I don’t know, the lines are a little blurred and I’m still really confused.”

Han fiddled with the cap of his water bottle, twisting it between his fingers, “What do you mean? Were there red flags or was the vibe weird?”

“No, Jongho was fine. He was perfect actually. We ended up going to Ohana’s and he even reserved a table near the window so we could see the fireworks,” he smiled softly, cheeks tinting pink, “It was romantic and even though he was nervous it was a cute kind of nervous, he’s endearing like that. I don’t think he has much experience and maybe that’s what made the end of the date feel so off.”

“Was it something he did? Changbin mentioned the guy asked him for some dating advice, apparently he was completely clueless. I’d hate going into a date without at least a little experience, let alone a date with someone like you.”

Yeosang rolled his eyes at the half-hearted dig the younger made, “Like you would know anything about dating at all. You can’t even talk to that performer guy you stare at during  _ every shift _ whenever he passes through for the parades,” he watched as the younger kicked at the ground, a silent  _ touchét _ , “But no, it wasn’t anything he did. It was more what he didn’t do.”

“You know I hate when you dance around it, tell me what happened,” Han demanded, looking with eager interest that Yeosang knew only came from the suspense.

He crossed his arms over his chest, leaning his weight against the wall behind him to take some of the pressure off of his feet, “It was going well, we got through dinner and had amazing conversations. We have a lot in common and we have mutual friends which makes it a little easier on us when we talk about our personal lives. Then the fireworks started and he asked if I wanted to move closer. I obviously said yes, and while I was sitting next to him we had this moment-”

Han jumped up, “Wait you made a move? Or he made a move? What do you mean you had a moment?” He fired off questions, those random bursts of energy shining through.

“If you would keep quiet and listen maybe then I can talk for long enough to finish a full sentence,” the younger pouted like a child who had been scolded, Yeosang smirked, “Anyway, no. No moves were made which is why I don’t even know if I should even be calling it a  _ moment _ ,” he spoke, using his fingers as air quotes, “it all happened so fast. One second we were looking at each other, it felt like we were about to kiss… and all of the sudden, out of nowhere, he pulls back like I burned him.”

Yeosang felt goosebumps spread across his arms beneath the sleeves of his uniform. Thinking of that night didn’t scare him per say, but it certainly didn’t sit right with him that the younger had pulled away like that. When the older went home that night he couldn’t stop replaying that moment over in his mind on loop, wondering if it was something he had done to make Jongho react in such a way. He thought he messed it up with him, that there wasn’t a chance that he would want to see Yeosang again. The thought was immediately dismissed, though, when he received a message from him that said he had a great night and hoped there would be another. That had to mean Jongho liked him, at least enough to want to go on another date. 

“It’s all… It’s all too confusing,” he said simply, not even breaking the surface of his thoughts.

Han nodded in understanding, sympathy written all over his features, “Maybe he was nervous? Like I said, Changbin mentioned he didn’t have a ton of dating experience. You said he wasn’t even out in high school, right? Which probably didn’t help him in the dating department in college. Don’t overthink it too much, Yeo, he was probably anxious about things moving too fast or something.”

Yeosang pinched the bridge of his nose, “It can’t be that simple. I called him the other night after work to set up another date or something and he seemed excited, not jittery or anything. He may be a little worried sometimes, or self conscious, but never jumpy like that,” he looked at Han, a little pleadingly in an attempt to get the other to understand, “It doesn’t feel right.”

He hummed, “You should talk to him about it. Communication is the best way to keep your thoughts from spiralling, trust me. It sounds like he got freaked out, even if it wasn’t from how fast the date was moving it could be something along those lines. Either way, you won’t know until you ask him.”

“When did you get so smart?” Yeosang teased.

Han grinned, “I’ve always been smart, you’re the one who refuses to listen to my genius ideas,” he paused for a few seconds before his face lit up like a lightbulb lit up behind his eyes, “like the one I had just now.” 

The younger walked towards the door, tugging it open with a hard pull and walking into the hallway. Yeosang followed him, curious and the smallest bit concerned. Again, it was never necessarily a matter of trust but an innate unease for what the boy was about to do. He watched as Han took the lanyard off of the hook outside of the tech room, using the key and taking it upon himself to enter without so much as a glance back in Yeosang’s direction.

“What the hell are you doing? Han-,” by the time he got to the doorway he saw his coworker fiddling with a few of the switches before taking a lever and tugging it. 

The lights in the room flickered and he heard the faint music of the ride fade for a few moments. He stared at the boy as he kept his hands hovering over the control board, “System restart,” he said, as if that was a response that even began to answer all of the questions Yeosang had. The younger grinned, the light in his eyes only making him seem more devious, “The auditory cues always get thrown off when we restart, so now you have call maintenance. See! I’m a genius.”

Yeosang opened and closed his mouth a few times, his mind now racing trying to understand the impulse decision the other had made. He had half a mind to grab Han by the throat and strangle him, “I’m going to fucking kill you.”

The color drained from his coworker’s face, “Now, now, wait. Hear me out. You need to talk to Jongho, the best way to do that is getting him over here. It’ll be easy. The auditory cues aren’t even a big deal,” he rattled off his defense like rapid fire, “You always mess them up anyway it was bound to happen at some point today, I only sped up the process. You should really be thanking me, actually.”

He raised a skeptic eyebrow, staring with a deadpan expression completely in disbelief, “I hate you. You’re more trouble than you're worth, I don’t know why I keep you around,” he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, smiling a little despite himself, “Your break is over, go outside to help Mina. I’ll call maintenance.”

Han let out a dramatic sigh of relief, “I knew your love for me was too great,” he wore that massive smile he always did after getting his way, “Now pull out that fancy walkie-talkie of yours and call upon your prince to come in here with his mighty screwdriver,” he clapped a hand on Yeosang’s shoulder as he slid passed him into the hallway, leaving the older to himself.

Yeosang took out his walkie-talkie, hesitating with his finger over the button. He wanted to talk to Jongho, he  _ needed _ to, but that little seed of fear took root in his stomach. He felt that sick feeling of anxiety he had after going home that night after their date. The two of them acted like nothing happened, which was his own fault for pretending to be unbothered when the younger had pulled away. He knew he was overthinking it, that all that probably happened was what Han had said about them moving too fast. Still, he knew there was something more. Jongho’s eyes were literal windows into his mind. His nerves were already high, that was undeniable, but there was something more intense than a simple apprehension. He was afraid, intimidated and borderline terrified when he looked into Yeosang’s eyes that were only mere inches away.

The thought that perhaps he had read the boy wrong entirely was what made him stop. Yeosang used to pride himself on being able to know what people were thinking or feeling, he only struggled with communicating which is why he had Wooyoung around so much. He momentarily wished for a few minutes to run what he planned to say by his friend, it would make everything so much easier. His feelings for the younger were getting too strong too fast for his liking and it was slowly eating him alive. He didn’t have the openness Wooyoung had about these things and that was going to make this conversation so hard.

He closed his eyes, imagining how it felt to have Jongho so close to him. How his hand took hold of his strong arm as he walked them to their table. How Jongho smiled when he talked about his job and how he frowned when talking about his home. How his heart stuttered in his chest when he caught the younger looking at him for a little too long. How his mouth was just close enough for him to feel the faintest of breaths against his cheek. How his eyes held an intense desire that became clouded by panic so fast Yeosang had almost missed it. He held onto seeing that raw  _ want _ in Jongho’s eyes. He needed to know what happened.

Yeosang shakily pressed the call button, “Hey, Rosé,” he swallowed, “Can you get in touch with Jennie? We’re having some auditory issues again,” squeezing his eyes shut, he forced out his next words as casually as he could manage, “Make sure she sends Jongho.”


	21. Trust In Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> San loved hard. He became too attached, too quickly and had little thought or regard for the consequences.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi hi !! so... I'm not going to waste too much of your time but I WILL SAY the plot Thickens from here on out and the next few chapters are going to be some of my favorites. Anywho, please stay safe and feedback is always appreciated :3
> 
> p.s. I apologize in advance and thank you so much for 300 kudos <3

**Choi San**

**Position: Jungle Cruise Employee, Magic Kingdom Park**

The air was warm as San walked to the ice cream parlor. For days now he wanted to spend some quality time with his roommate; they had gone so long without a movie night or a real meal together. He missed his best friend. San had been waiting all day to meet Mingi and surprise him, to offer to buy their favorite takeout and watch one of their favorite movies. Mingi was his haven and he wanted nothing more than to give back what the younger had been giving to him all of this time. Maybe they could even crash on the couch and have those sleepovers they had all the time during their first year living together. 

It was already almost completely dark, with the exception of the street lights and the windows from the shops. As he came up to the door he closed his eyes, thinking reassuring thoughts, before tugging on the handle and hearing that familiar chime of the bell. He spotted Mingi wiping down the counter, his head shot up at the sound of him coming in. Wendy was finishing up putting some boxes of what San assumed to be extra cups and utensils away. All of them looked in his direction, their shock melting away into familiar smiles that let San breathe a little easier.

“San, hey, what are you doing here?” Wendy asked, voice bright with a hint of excitement. Her uniform was wrinkled and stained with small stains of ice cream from her having worked all day. Still, the smile she wore was as big as ever.

San grinned in the way that made his dimple more pronounced, “I came to get Mingi. Surprise!” San held out his arms, exaggerating his shout, “I’m here to take you home and get some midnight dinner, fun right?”

Mingi stared at him in shock for a few moments before recovering and blinking quickly, “I-I can’t tonight,” he mumbled so quietly he San had almost missed it.

His expression fell, heart dropping to his stomach as his eyebrows furrowed, “What?” Was the only thing he could manage, his thoughts crowding together messily all at once. 

“I have to organize the restock and it’s my turn to clean the backroom tonight. Wendy needs to go to help her roommate out, right Wen?” He looked over to her, a silent pushiness in his eyes as he waited for her to confirm.

Wendy nodded, “Yeah, in fact, I should head out now,” she stood up straight, brushing off her uniform before grabbing her bag from off the floor and slinging it over her shoulder. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” she patted Mingi’s back as she strode past him to the door, “It was nice talking to you, San.”

The bell above the entryway again, the door slamming shut behind where San stood. The two boys stared at each other, San trying not to make his disappointment too obvious. He couldn’t help it, he waited all of this time to surprise him and Mingi had to stay late again. Every night for weeks he had to stay after hours much longer than he ever had to before and it was starting to be longer and longer. All he wanted was to have a night for just the two of them.

“It’s one night, can’t you take off? Please? I’m not asking for a lot.”

San’s hands trembled slightly. He had been so alone for so long and all he needed was a night to touch and be with someone. Mingi was the person he had for everything and he needed that again.

Mingi looked down at the shiny surface of the counter, biting his lip, “Nobody else is here, it’s my responsibility-”

“You can call Jeongin to have him come in tomorrow early and do it. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind,” San pleaded, stepping closer, “Please, I’ll pay for everything.”

He was desperate, struggling to hold onto that last thread he had connecting the two of them. There was already so much distance and he didn’t know how much longer he could go without him. 

The younger shook his head, “I’m sorry, but I can’t-”

“You never can,” San cut him off, “How is it possible that I haven’t seen you in weeks? You always have something to be doing here and it’s always the same stuff. There’s no way Wendy is giving you that much responsibility.”

Mingi met his eyes, “What is that supposed to mean? I’m not lying, I’ve been doing a lot more around here because I want to help out because the loss of our second manager put a lot of pressure on Wendy’s shoulders,” he spoke fast, defensively.

“Well then I think she would understand if you came home early. I feel like I haven’t seen you in forever, I barely know what’s going on with you and don’t think I don’t know that you’ve been keeping things from me. I know you want your privacy, but you’re my best friend and I want to make sure you’re okay.”

Mingi huffed, leaning forward and using his elbows to prop himself up against the counter, “Look, if I’m your friend then you should be able to understand that I don’t need to tell you everything especially when it comes to something as harmless as my job.”

“If it’s so harmless why can’t you tell me?” The question slipped out, a small bite to it. 

“Why do you want to know so bad? It's not like it’s life or death, you can handle it another night.”

San’s frown grew deeper, “What about when tonight turns into two nights? Three nights? A week? I can’t keep waiting up for you to get home… I’m tired. You know I need you there or I can’t sleep.”

Mingi rolled his eyes, “Stop playing that card. I saw you passed out on our couch and in your bed more in the last couple of weeks than I have since I moved in with you.”

“Yeah,” San glared at him, his fist closing so his nails dug into his palms, “because I have Wooyoung talk to me until I fall asleep from exhaustion. He’s been putting me to sleep every other night because you sometimes don’t even get home until two-thirty in the morning.”

“Who’s Wooyoung?” Mingi raised his eyebrows, his anger briefly replaced with confusion.

The older’s mouth fell open, “You have got to be getting me,” his smile twisted angrily, “Unbelievable, you don’t even know who Wooyoung is. Do you even listen to me when I talk? I met him weeks ago at Jungle Cruise. He’s Hongjoong’s roommate. I text or call him almost everyday,” he sighed, dejected and hopeless, “You’re supposed to be my best friend and you don’t pay attention to me for long enough anymore to know who I’m talking to.”

“I’m sorry, I’m just busy-”

Anger bubbled in his stomach, resentment boiling beneath his skin, “Busy doing what? How the hell are you always in the middle of doing something? You’re never available on your lunch breaks, you never pick up when I call you after work and when you do you always say you’re doing something for Wendy, and when you get home and I’m still awake you go straight to your room to go to bed,” San could hardly keep up with his mind, his words coming out sharp with the intention to sting. He was tired. That was all. He wanted his best friend back.

“I said I was sorry,” Mingi’s voice rose, deepening with the harshness of his tone.

San had to stop himself from cowering, “‘Sorry’ isn’t good enough. I want to know what you do here, what you’re keeping from me. It’s only fair. You used to tell me everything, that’s all I want is to have that again with you,” his voice wavered, “I already lost Hongjoong I don’t need to lose you too.”

“I’m not Hongjoong, and it isn’t that serious. Why are you making a big deal out of this?”

“I’m not, you’re the one keeping secrets for no reason,” he accused.

Mingi’s eyes narrowed, “You don’t know that. Stop assuming that you know everything going on in my life, just because we’re roommates doesn’t mean we have to share everything. I’m not obligated to share my personal life with you,” his face glowed with rage, something San had never seen in his friend before.

In all of the time San had known him, Mingi had been his safe place. He was somebody he could depend on, stable and consistent and kind. Hongjoong used to be that for him too, until he changed. During those weeks when Hongjoong had been cold to him, he would come home to Mingi’s warmth and let himself indulge in the comfort he had provided for him. He should have known this would happen.

“You complain about how much you need me and you whine about wanting me to come home, but you’re not even trying to understand how I feel. If you were actually my friend you would give me a break and let me have this one thing for myself,” Mingi spoke firmly, like a parent would scold a child.

“Don’t do that,” San stared at the floor, he couldn’t meet his eyes, “You know that-”

“That what? You can’t sleep without me? You can’t live without me?” Mingi scoffed, “I get it, I do, but you’re suffocating. I need my own life outside of that apartment.”

“And what life is that? Here? In this ice cream parlor you spend all day at? You always say you’re doing work here, but there’s something you’re not telling me because you wouldn’t be as angry as you are right now if that was all,” San took another step forward, his voice eerily calm, “You keep lying to me and you’re talking in circles. One second it isn’t a big deal and  _ I’m _ the problem, and then you’re acting like it’s some secret life you have that I’m not allowed to know about.”

Mingi glowered, “Like I said: I don’t need to tell you everything I’m doing every second of every day.”

“I never said you did!” San shouted, throwing his hands up, exasperated, “You’re putting words in my mouth. All I want is for you to talk to me, that’s all.”

“And all I want you to respect-”

Mingi was cut off by the bell above the door ringing. San whipped around to see a tall boy standing in the entryway wearing a nightguard security uniform. His mouth was open and his face was bright pink from barging in during the middle of what no doubt  _ looked _ like an argument.

The color had drained from Mingi’s face, “Y-Yunho? You weren’t- What time is it?” He looked down at his watch, “Fuck, it’s midnight. San you need to go, right now. We can do this later. I can’t talk to you right now.”

San’s body went up in flames, his vision turned red and rage clouded his mind like a storm, “No, no you don’t get to fucking do that to me. You don’t get to tell me what to do after this, fuck that. Who the hell is he?” He pointed to Yunho with murder in his eyes, “And what makes him so important that you’re shutting me out?”

“Mingi?” The boy’s, Yunho’s, voice shook. In fact, the whole of him was shaking so much so that he looked like he had been stricken across the face.

Mingi looked between them, his own anger being replaced with distress, “Yunho, please, wait outside and I-”

“No,” San growled, “He gets to stay and you have to tell me who he is right fucking now,” he stopped himself, glancing back at Yunho to give him a once over before turning back to Mingi. The realization hit him like a tidal wave, “He’s the one you stay after for.”

Mingi forced his gaze to his feet, biting his lip, “San. Get out,” he said through gritted teeth. 

“Tell me,” San demanded.

The younger sighed, resigning himself, “He’s… Yunho and I met a few weeks ago. He comes in every night after my shift to talk and keep me company while I finish closing. We got along really well and eventually, I guess, we kept talking for longer and longer. The two of us have a lot in common and I started looking forward to seeing him every night,” he locked stares with Yunho who stood wordlessly at the door, as though if he needed to leave he could make a run for it.

San’s throat was dry, he felt like he couldn’t breath, “Why?” He asked breathily, “Why would you keep him from me?”

Mingi kept his gaze trained on Yunho, not even bothering to see San’s broken expression, “He’s my best friend,” he smiled as he said it.

A knife was shoved into San’s chest, twisting with Mingi’s words. He had been replaced. What he felt was his world was stripped away from him in a second and his insides crumbled.

“We wanted to keep each other for ourselves. What we had was and should have stayed private,” Mingi’s tone shifted from fondness to bitterness, “Until you ruined it. I told you to leave, you shouldn’t have even come here,” he didn’t shy away like before. He fixed his gaze onto the older, frigid and emotionless, making San’s blood run cold, “Get out. Now.”

“You…,” was the only word that left his lips, broken. His heart shattered in his chest, the sharp pieces sticking between his ribs and stabbing into his lungs making it harder and harder to breathe with every second.

“I said now,” his voice sounded like thunder in San’s ears, “I’m not going to ask again.”

As though he was on autopilot, he moved stiffly with his eyes trained on the ground. He walked silently past Yunho who moved out of his way cautiously. His hand landed on the door handle that felt frozen beneath his fingers. San turned it weakly, barely hearing the bell above the door and feeling distant in his own body. The air outside felt cool against his face and his eyes burned with unshed tears.

The disbelief made his legs weak and his limbs go numb. After everything they had been through: all of those nights spent watching movies, getting dinner, talking, laughing, crying… None of it mattered, not to Mingi. He was going to throw him away, cast him aside. Mingi didn’t want him just like the performers didn’t want him, his old roommates didn’t want him, and Hongjoong didn’t want him. San should have known, he should have figured it out sooner. There will always be a reason to get rid of him.

His mind was a messy culmination of every rejection he had ever faced. 

The careless letter from the company, confirming he was only an afterthought in their eyes. He was just another failed performer who wasn’t good enough, never worth their time in the first place.

San wrapped his arms around himself, his body shaking violently as he tried to hold himself together. He felt the chill of his apartment in the night air, the emptiness of it after his roommate abandoned him without so much as a goodbye. In his memory, he saw the lifelessness, the vacancy in his own reflection. His fear of being left behind taking permanent residence in the back of his mind.

He squeezed his eyes shut, a tear running down his cheek while he clenched his jaw so tight it ached just to hold back a painful sob that threat to burst past his lips. Hongjoong’s furious eyes scalded his skin. The whispered harsh words loud in his ears as he recalled them. They told him how irresponsible he was, threatening him for mistakes he should have known not to make. He was worthless.

Loneliness seeped into his bones, turning his limbs to cement despite the feeling that he was floating outside of his body. He needed something, anything. He needed to feel. 

San wiped angrily at his cheeks trying to get rid of the residual tear tracks. Part of him wanted to turn back, try to say he was sorry for fucking up so badly. He would do anything to take it back, to have Mingi again. 

He stopped from where he was right at the exit of the park. His eyes flitted up toward the sky, searching for stars he knew he couldn’t see. It was dark, and in the big empty space, he felt completely alone. San needed someone. He needed to find a new safe place and he needed it now. When Hongjoong had turned on him and became someone he couldn’t rely on, he went home to Mingi. He cried and begged the younger to stay and Mingi had promised, but he didn’t have his roommate to go home to. 

San pulled out his phone from his pocket, the blue light of the screen lighting up his features. He scrolled through his contacts until he found the name he had become so familiar with. With an impulsive click he lifted the phone to his ear, listening to it ring… one… two… three-

_ “Sannie? Hey, you’re calling later than usual, you okay? Is something wrong?”  _ Wooyoung’s voice came out smooth, a twinge of worry laced into the silvery tone that San melted at the sound of.

San ran a hand through his hair, sniffing a bit before speaking, “Yeah,” he laughed, “I-I mean no… no I’m not okay, actually,” he blinked fresh tears away from his eyes.

_ “What happened? What’s wrong?” _ The younger asked quickly, the sound of creaking could be heard from the other end and San pictured him sitting up on his bed.

“I was- I was just wondering if you would want to come over? I know it’s late, but-”

There was more shuffling,  _ “I’ll be there, just text me the address and give me half an hour, okay?”  _ His words were genuine and San didn’t care about the consequences, he needed Wooyoung.

San breathed deeply, the painful feeling in his chest subsiding at the thought of him, “Okay.”


End file.
